Away From Sunshine
by Sevie-Poo
Summary: So close...and yet so distant. Things start to fall apart for Ciel and Sebastian when they are forced to perform intimate acts for the camera...the world spirals out of order from there. A Kuroshitsuji fic. Contains yaoi and SebastianxCiel.
1. Routine

_Disclaimer: I do not own these characters. This is a fanwork._

_A/N: This was not just written by myself. This fanfic is an edited role play that I did with a friend of mine. I really did try to put it together so that it didn't read too much like an rp...  
_

"I see you used the Royal Dolton, good..." Ciel took a sip of the warm tea. Blue eye fixed on his butler, almost with a cold look that was too grown up for someone his age. He wanted him to know, as well as everyone, that Ciel Phantomive was the master of the Manor now. Only him...

He shut his eyes, drowned his thoughts in the tea, taking another sip, before asking nonchalantly, "...today's plans?"

Everyday was duty and routine. First was grooming himself, making sure the mansion was safe, then waking up the other servants, getting the tea and meal ready, getting Ciel up, and then now there was the part of informing his master what the on the day's schedule. "Several invitations need to be responded to, some studies should be done as well, and then Café Soho wants to open up downtown. The owner states he is rather close to the Queen, and apparently they are requesting that you be one of the testers for the food, if you decide to."

Ciel looked at him, idly fiddling with his ring, half-listening, expecting the usual duties and getting them, until the mention of the cafe, where his face showed a hint of surprise with a flicker of excitement at the prospect of new tastes and new sweets... however, he still hadn't finished the new game, and the head of Phantom toys wasn't one ..shouldn't be one to slack. Though he really, really wanted to go, he wouldn't show it to the butler. "I'm too busy to go to some cafe. I've got work..." As if to stress this, he shuffles some papers on his desk, putting them together in front, his visible eye looking off to the side.-

Like a loyal dog, Sebastian watched his master closely. There wasn't much sign on his face other than 'happiness.' He tried to read the younger's expression, but expression was something that Ceil also lacked just like himself. "I see…I shall inform the owner of your decline then." He paused for a moment as the noise of the papers shuffling together filled the room. "Would you like me to leave you to do your work? At 1 P.M. we must do some studying." He stood just as still in place. He had to admit, going out may prove to be interesting, but his interest was in Ceil and the boy's priority. Whatever he wanted, Sebastian would not question or tell him otherwise.

Looking at the papers he had been shuffling, Ciel's lips parting to answer the butler, and then closing again. The papers just happened to be revenues for the month. His eye skimmed over them, "wait..." his expression remained the same, expressionless, as he read the papers for a minute. He then glanced back up to Sebastian, putting the papers down. He leaned back in the chair, gazing at him, "Did you say the owner of this cafe is friends with the Queen?"

For a second, Sebastian's eyes shifted down from Ceil's face. He focused on the boy's hands at that moment…those small and slender fingers…That single word was spoken then—wait. At once the demon looked back at Ceil's visible eye. Slowly his smirk directed to the corner of his lips. "That is right, I did say that…and that is what Mister Ethyl, the café owner, said." Staying in the same position, the toe of his foot only shifted slightly. "Are you having second thoughts, my master? Might I suggest that Mister Ethyl deliver some of his cooking here if you do not wish to go out?"

"The Queen's children are our top customers. " He smiled then, a quick, upward turn of the lips. His mouth smiled, his eyes didn't. He had forgotten what it was to really smile. Still, he was as close to content as he could be, with the way things had turned out. It would be good for his business to go to the opening , where he would get a chance to try new sweets, and it would be nice to get away from the Manor...from them... "Please inform Mister Ethyl that I will attend his opening. I'll leave you to get the carriage ready...just let me know, at what time we must leave."

That smile: It was a rare right indeed to behold. Sebastian couldn't help but wonder if Ciel had something on his mind. Perhaps he would test the food and then turn the taste down so that Mister Ethyl would be too embarrassed to open the café? "I will do that and return to you as soon as possible in order to let you know." Sebastian took that as his dismissal as that was a pressing matter of today's task.

Giving a final bow to his lord, he turned and shifted a foot so that he could go to the office and make the call.

Business went smoothly and the man was more than happy to know that Earl Ciel Phantomhive was going to come to try his food today. A time was decided and it wasn't long at all before Sebastian was facing Ciel again. "In an hour…he seemed rather eager to have you…" He said slowly, his senses tingling about this ordeal, but he was not going to tell Ciel since Sebastian had his don't ask don't tell aesthetics.

Ciel glanced up from his papers as his eyes were once more met with that of Sebastian. He listened, then his lips parted and he gave out a little sigh, putting the paper down and closing his visible eye. 'Eager huh...?' He reached out a hand, taking the cane from beside his desk and curling small fingers around it as he opened a sapphire orb and looked at his butler, for indeed he was his in more ways than one. "Greed makes people eager, Sebastian..." the boy stood up then, walking around his desk, cane clicking against the marble floor, closing the gap between servant and master. He looked up at Sebastian, then looked off to the side, "....are these clothes suitable, do you think?" referring to his usual garments. If the opening was in an hour, they would have to make haste.

Sebastian watched every action, no matter how small or how large. It was his job, after all. He had to be there for Ceil if even to protect him from a trip on the floor. "Yes…that it does." He agreed to the statement that was made about greed. He knew about greed all too well due to being a demon…

As Ciel stepped closer to him then, Sebastian studied him closely. Did he look suitable? Yes, he did…but this was also an opportunity for touch. Speaking of greed, Sebastian was greedy for his master. He tried not to think about it, but he often felt that he was more into Ciel…er….this contract…then Ciel was with…him. The demon liked to think that he just took his job very seriously. "I think a shade down from that color coat would fit better with those shoes…" He said and then turned to the wardrobe, taking out another jacket. "May I?" He got on one knee to be at the other's height. Reaching forward, he attempted to remove the suit jacket from Ciel since it was his job to dress him, but his hands seemed to have lingered a bit more on the boy's body than normal.


	2. Drink up!

It did not take long to get to town then, and the streets were just as busy as ever. "It seems like a nice day." Shifting himself, he opened the door to the carriage and stepped out. The new cafe was just a few steps away, and the smell of cake and sugar filled the air.

Ciel's eyelids fluttered a bit as the scent of baked goods wafted near his nose. He was hungry, specially for anything sweet. He wondered if this bakery could match Sebastian's cooking, and doubted it. He could already feel eyes on him, people walking by, upper and lower classes alike, staring The one-eyed boy with a tall butler were always drawing attention. The Phantomhive household was infamous. He showed no sign of noticing this though, as his face usually showed no sign of anything, and began to walk towards the door, cane tapping against the ground. He spoke calmly, somberly, "Let's meet the greedy Mr. Ethyl, Sebastian."

The owner, Mister Ethyl, was already standing outside his door's cafe while waving his hand. He was thin but well belt and with semi-long light blond hair. Sebastian narrowed his eyes at the man...he looked a bit familiar in an odd sense...

With a straight and an adult expression on his face the Earl greeted the café owner, "Mr. Ethyl? I'm honored to come to this tasting. Thank you for inviting me." He gave a gracious bow.

Ciel took off his hat as he entered the café and was met with the sight of Mr. Ethyl. He made a small bow of greeting with his upper body and gave him one of those dimmed smiles. The man immediately began talking with a strong British accent, shaking Ciel's hand violently, "Welcome, Earl. It's such an honor to have you here. My kids buy everything from Funtom, and I must say the toys are splendid! Just splendid!" The man continued to jabber unimportant formalities and Ciel glanced around.

The café was nice. It was small, elegant, and intimate, with flowers and white tablecloth, and several waiters bustling about, carrying trays of sweets. Ciel was grateful it wasn't too crowded, he hated crowds, and didn't even really like leaving the Manor. Still, he took a deep breath, and let out a sigh, it was all for his Majesty.

Mr. Ethyl hadn't released his hand and Ciel frowned at the unwanted physical contact. He slipped his fingers form the others and cleared his throat.

"Now, please follow me, I wish the Earl to try some of our Italian coffee and biscuits…" Mr. Ethyl said as he led Ciel to a chair, and the young Earl could feel everyone's eyes on him, and of course, on Sebastian. Everywhere they went, the two attracted attention. The café was only filled with several aristocrats, but they all stared.

"Won't you sit, sir?" one of the workers asked to the butler. Sebastian blinked once and slowly and then looked at Ciel as if waiting for his permission instead of deciding on his own.

The Earl tore his gaze from the demon and fixed it back on the row of sweets that had been placed in front of him by the waiters. His voice was calm, and cool, "Go ahead, Sebastian. If Mr. Ethyl is so gracious as to include you in this testing, you must accept."

Mr. Ethyl raised a hand up in the air. "Mister Gelatin, please bring The Earl's butler some tea and biscuits as well!"

Sebastian narrowed his eyes a bit. As his job as a butler, he was supposed to just stand at Ciel's side while he tested the food, but the workers here were really excited to have another person here to try things out it seemed. Still, it left the demon butler with a looming feeling. He was still trying to figure out where he had seen this cafe owner before. Not only did he look familiar, but his smell was as well. Being a demon, he picked up on each person's scent like that...

In his head Sebastian had his own feelings about this current situation, but he kept them to himself. He really did not feel like, or want to, taking part of this stupid little game of taste tester. It wasn't just because he didn't have a good feeling about this place, but because he simply wasn't into it. His only care was Earl Ciel Phantomhive and keeping him safe and happy. However, it was on that note that he was going to be forced into this party. It would simply be rude and unacceptable for him to reject the offerings. It would make him look like a careless and selfish butler. Even so, despite these sour thoughts, Sebastian kept smiling kindly the whole time.

"Well please!" Mr. Ethyl said after laying out the last bit of the biscuits and the waiter finished pouring Sebastian's tea now that he was a part of this event. "Go ahead and try." Some of the other people dining in the cafe watching with smiles as they hoped the famous Earl would find the food just as good as they did.

Ciel looked at Sebastian, sitting across from him, and closed his eye for a moment, the half-smile slightly fading from his face. It was the first time since the fateful day that they had appeared as equals. It felt odd, since he was so used to the other serving him, and tending to his needs, and though they shared something stronger than anyone could imagine, sharing a meal felt slightly, awkward, of course the younger didn't show it. He wondered how the other felt about this situation. Feeling eyes on him, he opened his eye, banished these thoughts away, picked up his spoon and dipped it into a nearby parfait, bringing it to his lips. He tasted it, rolling the ice cream around in his tongue, and found it to be…interesting.

Sebastian's sweets were so good, everything paled in comparison. The parfait was much too sweet. Still, Ciel was twelve, and what twelve year old didn't like sweets? He noticed Mr. Ethyl watching him, and gave another one of his dimmed smiles, "It's sweet." A comment which made Mr. Ethyl blink, wondering whether that was a good thing, or bad thing.

Ciel then tried the tea, closing his eyes and letting the aroma fill him. It was a lot stronger then what he was used too, and compared to Sebastian's, mediocre. He put the tea down, and wondered how he should phrase this, "Your tea, where is it from?"

"We brought it from India…" Mr. Ethyl said, looking at the young Earl eagerly, "they say it's good for circulation, Count!" Ciel looked at him curiously and blinked once, then glanced back at the other "Circulation?...Well, it definitely has a unique taste…"

Mr. Ethyl secretly felt like strangling the boy, as he hadn't said a positive or negative thing yet, only gave neutral comments. He turned his eyes to the butler, hoping at least, that the Phantomhive's butler would appreciate his efforts.

Like any proper gentleman, Sebastian sat up straight in his seat and kept an approachable expression upon him. He stared at Ciel across from him, waiting for him to start with the dining first. For a split second in time though, everything around them disappeared. It was only Ciel and himself seated at that single table, looking at one another eye to eye. It was at that time that Sebastian's face became something that was not false for once. He smiled at the boy and it was something that was actually...affectionate? No, it couldn't have been...

It wasn't his master's voice that snapped the demon back to reality then, it was Mr. Ethyl speaking about the tea from India. Ah, chai tea...that would explain the sweet smell of it.

Sebastian frowned a bit. Chai did not go well with Italian biscuits. What sort of cafe were they running? Of course it was not his place to say that. This was up to Ciel if he liked the flavor and presentation of the food.

A look was given to him then from his master and that was the sign that he was now to start himself in this indulgence. He turned to give Mr. Ethyl a final smile before lifting the glass to his lips and taking a sip of his own tea...

"DID THEY TAKE IT YET!?" A voice yelled from the kitchen in the back along with a man peaking out from the door. He was dressed in chef's wear and appeared to have long black hair pinned up under his hat.

"Mister Adote, please!" Ethyl called back to the man. "I'm...sorry about Mister Adote...he is a bit excited..."

A light coughing: Sebastian curled over with his hand over his mouth, eyes wide and looking as if he had just been poisoned. "This is..." He really looked as if he was about to pass out as his body quivered...that was...abnormal even for him.

If he didn't like something, then he wouldn't be so dramatic about it, but there was something in this tea that wasn't supposed to be in it...something that hurt a demon...Ciel would soon feel the effects of his own tea...no, it was not made like Sebastian's, but it had a simple sleeping drug in it along with the food...

Eye widened as Ciel suddenly saw Sebastian's face, and his lips parted, "Se…Sebastian!" He wanted to get up…willed his legs to work but…why couldn't he move? Was his vision blurring? His eyelids felt heavy, and his body did as well.

Sleep…he wanted to sleep. His small body swayed a bit in the chair, and he could do nothing as his eyes closed, and he fell forward, his body going limp against the tablecloth as a deep sleep enveloped him.

No matter how hard he tried, Sebastian could not move. It felt like his insides were burning...and they were with what he had just consumed. "M...Master..." He spoke with much effort. "Run! G-Get out of here!" He tried to stand up, but instead he just fell over on his side, off the chair. The other "rich people" in the cafe started to laugh. "No..." What was going on? Why wasn't Ciel leaving this place!? That voice from the kitchen rang in again.

"AHAHAHA, they are fucked now!"

Sebastian looked up in the cook's direction with much effort. He could no longer see clearly. Everyone was blurred, but the cooks eyes glowed and he showed a sharp smile...that....he knew that look—Grell!

"Go on, give him more tea!" The shinigami said. Mister Ethyl got down on the floor and stuck the opening of the teapot between the demon's lips.

"Drink up~" Then, just like Ciel...Sebastian had gone to blackness as well.


	3. Save me

Who knows how much later they would wake up...but when Sebastian did, they were what appeared to be in a basement, tied back to back. "Master..." He breathed heavily, trying to reach his hand back to see if he could feel the other's hand. Was he awake? Was he okay?

Standing all around them were the other "aristocrats" and Mr. Ethyl and Grell...

"Master...master!" Sebastian said again, each time he spoke the title it was louder. He needed for Ciel to wake up. The child's energy was low just as his own, he wasn't dead though...he could sense it. They must have only put a sleeping drug in him or something of the likes. Sabastian's own breathing was heavy. Each breath he took was with effort and pain. Finally though, he heard that sweet voice...even if it was stressed at the moment.

Heat, that excruciating heat…Fire….everywhere, flames….the hand of his father…the manor burning…the ring….then, the heat began to fade, and he felt it, the fingers against his hand, gloved fingers that felt slightly rough against his skin. Ciel parted his lips to let out a grown and opened his visible eye, his vision slowly focusing as he raised his head. He blinked once, slowly, and then widened his eyes, a gasp escaping his lips. Where was he? It was dark…very dark, and a musky odor filled his senses. Someone was pressing against his own, and he knew, without even turning around, whose it was Sebastian! His young, icy voice echoed against the stone walls, and he bowed his head again, the effect of the sleeping drugs still making his head swim, "Where are we....? What has happened?"

In the darkness, the demon's red eyes glowed. He could see well just like a cat in the night. "We...appear to be in a basement...and we are...not alone...as for what happened....." He winced, and it was at that moment the lights turned on bright.

"Good morning sleeping beauty~" Grell stood in front of the masses of people, which consisted of Mister Ethyl and the other aristocrats. "Did you have a nice sleep? How did you enjoy my...special tea I made you, Little Sebast." Grell laughed as Sebastian growled.

He tried his hardest to break the ropes, crack some necks, anything...but his power was drained from that tea he was given...that tea, which was not made with regular water...but holy water.

"Grell!" Ciel's eye widened more and his jaw dropped at seeing the shinigami who killed his aunt, in all his extravagant horror, in front of them. He felt a wave of anger that literally shook his small body. His dark blue orb fixed on the shinigami with a cold, defiant look that seemed too old for his childish features. He ignored the rest, and struggled against the binding, wanting to free his arm and remove his eye patch, to summon Sebastian's demonic powers, unaware that Sebastian had been given his one kryptonite, holy water, to drink. Ciel could see her…Madame Red….the shinigami's chainsaw tearing into her body…he shut his eyes a moment, forcing the though to banish, though his body shook even more, and he knew Sebastian could feel it.

Once more Ciel opened his eye, outwardly seeming calm. Expression frozen, "What do you want…Grell? Wasn't killing my aunt enough?..."

The shinigami, always dramatic, laughed and did a little twirl, aaah, Earl, I had to kill her, she was a useless woman… !" He crouched down in front of Sebastian, "My little Sebast I have missed you…it's so unfair that I have to tie my Romeo up this way!" He sighed dramatically, and reached out to caress the demons cheek.

Sebastian gave a cold look, an expression of hatred, then to the shinigami as he spoke to him. It was action and reaction then as the redhead tried to caress him. Sebastian instantly jerked his head away.

Grell sighed deeply and frowned. "You will learn to appreciate my love for you." He stood back up straight and slammed his heel boots down on both Sebastian's and Ciel's hands since they were together. Ciel winced but didn't cry out as Grell's high-heeled boot crashed against Sebastian and his hands, tearing them apart. "And, it's a lot better than this so-called 'love' you have for the brat. Hah!"

The god of death was about to go on more when the Italian spoke up. He glared at him but then smiled. "Now now, don't forgot the deal we have." The man said as he puleed out his gun, stepping forward and aiming it at Ciel. "You two….are responsible for the death of my cousin and his mob…"

Grell looked back to Ciel and Sebastian then. "There seems to be a lot of deals going on around here, hm? Because~~ I'm about to offer you one, Little Sebast." He cleared his throat and walked back to something covered. He pulled a red cloth off it to reveal a studio camera. "You see...Mister Rossi here is very upset with you two...you killed his family..." He directed his look to Ciel then "You should know what that is like..." He snickered, and then Mister Rossi, who was previously Mister Ethyl, spoke up again. "You! The Phantomhive business that was supposed to be good for us, ruined us! So now...I will ruin you! Both of you! I'll make sure The Earl and his freak butler never work again and will be the laughing stock of the world! Then I will have your organs for the money you lost us!"

"Master..." Sebastian spoke the word, though this time in a whisper. It even took a lot of his strength to touch Ciel, but he did. He could feel what Ciel was feeling. The servant tired to grasp his hand again, as if that was a last hope for protection...as pathetic as it was..."I'll get us out of this...I promise..." He said, but how...?

Grell laughed again. "What Mister Rossi is forgetting to say...is that you will have your ends if you, Little Sebast, will agree to dump The Earl and..." He sparkled, "Accept me as your Juliet! Just say that you will let me have your child, and you will be free!"

He trembled slightly, opened his eye again as Sebastian's words resounded in his ears, _'I'll get us out…I promise.' _ Sebastian would. He couldn't lie to him, it was part of the contract. He forced the panic rising in his chest down, and watched Grell with the same defiant expression, outwardly calm, his trembling ceasing. He could only listen to what Grell spoke when he faced Sebastian, and didn't see the camera.

Then, Grell's preposition: Ciel actually laughed then, he parted his lips and laughed. Sebastian would never agree to it. Grell stood up but the Italian beat him too it, Mr. Rossi walked to the boy and grabbed his face in his hands, "What's so funny? He turned Ciel's face to one side, then another, "such a lovely face…and that eye colour…it will fetch quite a price in the market. I'd like to see you laughing then, Phantomhive brat."

Grell cackled dramatically and looked back to Sebastian, crouching down. "Well~~? Don't leave me hanging! My heart is in your hands!! Dump that boy, be mine~…"

Those words...they were more difficult to deal with than any weapon or chain saw. This all left a sour taste in Sebastian's mouth, and the vocabulary choices made the demon's insides twists. Grell always had a special way of making it out to sound like Sebastain had a deep love for Ciel, more than just that of a business partner...but it wasn't, right?

…Well, it was...but it was completely one sided. Ciel made that obvious every time he tried to show a little affection to him. Besides that, since when was it heard of for a demon to have feelings for a human? That wasn't supposed to be, and that was an accident. Now, Grell was just putting it all in his face again. "Never..." Sebastian finally said with a dark shadow over his face. "You....repulse me."

Ciel's lips twisted into a smirk when he heard Sebastian's refusal.

Grell stared wide-eyed with a frown, like he had literally shattered. He was silent for a second but then turned his back and flicked some long red hair over his shoulder. "Fine~ It's your turn, Mister Rossi." He walked away into the shadows, his heels clicking against the floor. Those heels...Sebastian still tried to cling onto Ciel's hand, even though his fingers must have been sprained now.

Mister Rossi was already in the game now though. He was harassing Ciel, and that made Sebastian squirm like a dog that couldn't get its owner...even though he was right there...The Italian noticed this as well. "Ahah...I think I'm upsetting your freak...so...are you two really like...that?" Sebastian tried peering over his shoulder, only to see the man take out his gun. "Like...how the woman said?" He suggestively stuck his finger in the barrel of the gun to imply sex.

Sebastian's brow dropped....'woman?' Great...just like Grell to claim he is a she.

Ciel looked into 's eyes, and gave him a mysterious smile, "Puppies will never bite the hand that feed them…" This comment earned Ciel a slap across his face. He winced and let out a small sound between his teeth, his back pressed against Sebastian's.

Then, he felt Sebastian's gloved fingers on his, and they were so comforting. Sebatian…he would save them, he never lied. Ciel brushed his fingers against the others, even though the movement caused him to tremble with pain.

He wanted to look at Sebastian's face, to be reassured, and turned his bruised face around, but couldn't see him.

His eye once more rose to fix on the Italian when the man spoke in his heavy accent, and widened at his suggestion. The boy narrowed his eyes, did this man know about their contract? He parted his lips once more, to say what he always said, "He is my butler…"

All of the demon's muscles contorted on his face as he watched the obscene gesture with the gun. That was really the least of his concerns now though. What was dangerous was that this guy had a gun out and he could barely move of finger.

The corner of his lip cringed lightly as he felt that response from his master--the way he touched his digit against his confined hand along with that normal, hollow, statement. It turned his cringe into a smile...but it didn't last long as Mister Rossi shifted himself so that the both of them could see him. "He is your butler...and that's what makes this so scandalous!" He pressed the gun at Ciel's head then. At the sound of the safety being turned off, Sebastian tied again to break the binds, to squirm out of the ties, to do something--anything! The only thing it did was make Mister Rossi laugh. "Aw...mister butler is upset that I'm going to kill his lover~"

Sebastian hissed. "He is my master. I must protect him."

"Hmmm~ How about this..." The Italian gestured to one of his 'friends'. They picked up the clicker of the camera and held it with a smile, thumb on the button. "Lets just see what you two are really made of. I won't put a bullet through The Earl's head if you two do some poses for the camera. It's really a win-win for you two, as you would be untied and keeping your organs. If not....bang."

_Lover?_ The word made the blood drain from Ciel's face. His eyes widened even more and he stared at Mr. Rossi as he heard the gun. He felt suddenly sick at what Mr. Rossi suggested. It was true, there was something about Sebastian that drew Ciel in, something seductive that made him feel safe, and perhaps, made him feel, strange, but… Sebastian was his butler, and a man. Not to mention much older, and he the young virgin parted his lips to yell, "Sebastian!! Save me!" He had had enough, and was genuinely scared now. The Phantomhives were the Queen's watch dogs and if anyone saw…them like this… doing whatever the other wanted…the boy struggled against the ropes, and repeated his statement, "save me!"


	4. Smile For The Camera

Mr. Rossi laughed loudly, "Not so confident now, Phantombrat." He pressed his gun more into Ciel's forehead, and looked at Sebastian and smirked, "Admit it…you've thought about it…having him…"

Grell made a whiney noise from the background, "Sebast is mine!!"

"Shut up!" Mr Rossi barked, looking back to Sebastian. He let his gun drag down the Ciel's face, his chest, down his body, coming dangerously close to his crotch, "You want to touch him like my gun is touching him, don't you? It wouldn't be so bad, just a few poses and then, freedom."

Ciel's body reacted and he shivered in horror, but Mr. Rossi's hand came to wind in his silky hair and pulled his face back, "It's this, or death, Phantombrat."

Ciel said nothing for a moment. He was repulsed beyond belief. He knew they couldn't trust the man, and they would be dead anyways. So, he just repeated his words again in a hollow voice, "Sebastian…save me."

It was getting harder to breath by the second, and Sebastian felt as if his body going to break. Was this because of the amount of that horrible water in his system, or was it the situation they were put in? Sebastian's whole body shuttered in vexation. Even though he could not see everything, he knew very well what was going on and what that man was doing to his master.

Then, there was Ciel telling him to save him over and over as the weapon molested what it shouldn't have touched. Sebastian shot his eyes wide open, his orbs glowing a bright red. "That's enough!" He growled loudly, extremely loud...which was rather out of character for the demon due to his constant cool and calm manner. It did get everyone's attention though. All the heads turned to look at the man over the child.

"Oh? Have you decided?" Mister Rossi questioned. Complete anger blanketed Sebastian: Anger from being put in this problem, anger from drinking that tea, anger from not being able to protect Ciel....anger from that guy 'touching' what belonged to him...

"I...we...agree to your terms." That was the first time...he had made a choice for his master...but he was doing what Ciel had said...and that was to save him.

Ciel was so shocked at Sebastian's words, he couldn't move, his jaw dropped, and he paled even further. He could only sit there like an immobile doll, staring as the room blurred, repulsed, as Mr. Rossi grinned evilly. Grell gave an upset squeal, but he was too depressed from the butler's refusal to have his baby, he did nothing but curl up in a corner holding his chainsaw.

Mr. Rossi narrowed his eyes at Sebastian, "Alright then…try and cheat, and I blow both your brains out." He ordered some of his men to break the binds and they did, freeing the hands of the butler and his master. However, several man grabbed Ciel and bound his arms.

"There will be no showing us your eye this time…"Mr. Rossi hissed at the boy.

Ciel turned his face to look at him, a shadow passing through his features.

"Yes, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that your eye turns the butler into some kind of super human..." He then looked at the man with the camera and gave a grin, "get it ready…" he turned his eyes, already showing a perverseness, to Sebastian. "Sooo~… should I let you choose what pose or do you need directions?" He gave a laugh then and Ciel looked at Sebastian, waiting for him to save him...

As Sebastian now stared at Ciel, his body felt like it was in so much pain, but it was nothing compared to the way his master must feel right now...So, no cheating? Tch, humans--he could have all of them dead within a second if his spirit wasn't broken. Even so, the demon butler gave one last try. He didn't need to physically touch someone to have them knocked out or dead...it was no use though...the most someone felt in the room was a small tug.

"Did you feel something?" The random Italian asked to someone standing next to him. The guy just shook his head and shrugged.

Failure. Sebastian's brow forward upwards in stress at seeing the other mens' hands on his master. He clenched his fingers into a fist at his sides. "Hmph....I wi...I would appreciate it if you did not touch him..." Sebastian said coldly at the men holding the younger down.

Mister Rossi laughed. "Is that so? Well, then get on top of him!" He pushed at the butler, pushing him down so that he would land over Ciel. He caught himself though despite being met with the ground. He stared down at his master, on all fours, straddling over him. "Go on, get to it."

"Mas...ter...."

"Sebastian, what are you waiting for?" Ciel said, his voice a bit more high pitched then usual, his expression void, though his body trembled a bit. The boy's blue orb stared into two red ones intensely. He still didn't understand why Sebastian wasn't merely killing everyone. Even without showing his contract, the demon had enough power to kill them with one look. He could do nothing but stare into Sebastian's face, his small chest rising and falling as he breathed heavily, waiting to be saved…

"Go on, get on with it!" Mr. Rossi yelled, licking his lips. The two - butler and master, were so damn beautiful, the pictures would sell in India, the Americas…his mind was already swimming with the possibilities.

What was he waiting for? Could he...actually do this to Ciel? The tips of his wounded fingers ran cold and his throat was tight. This wasn't how he had pictured it at all in his head: The day when he would actually be able to touch his master like this. No, he had watched the scene many times in his head...and it was nothing like this. It was full of warmth, soft music, the finest scented oils, roses, silk, and intimate privacy. Not this...not a cold basement floor with tons of people watching and a camera and gun pointed at them...It was rather depressing.

Ciel lay on the cold floor, staring up at Sebastian, waiting….waiting for the moment he would begin to kill those around them. Panic rose within him again as he suddenly saw the demons expression, an expression of pure defeat he thought he could never see on Sebastian's face. Ciel was scared, really scared then. His whole body trembled with fear as his mind raced. Sebastian was acting, surely Sebastian was acting. It was just a matter of time before the utensils began flying.

Closing his eyes, Sebastian dropped his head down. His long raven hair falling forward at the sides of his face. "Master...I'm sorry..." He finally lowered himself down and took a heavy breath. One hand wrapped gently within the boy's hair to tilt his head back while the demon pressed his lips just perfectly against the other's.

The boy's lips were claimed by the demon's. Everything stopped….Ciel's body tensed and his eye widened. What was he doing? For a moment he could neither move, nor speak, only feel Sebastian's mouth, surprisingly soft for a demons, on his own. Then reaction finally occurred, He parted his lips, spoke a muffled protest against the butler's "Mmf..NO! Sebastian, what are you doing?" He was horrified, he longed to fade into the stone floor and disappear, go back to Phantomhive Manor, to the safety of his freshly washed silk sheets. He spoke again, "They won't let us go…they will kill us…Sebastian what are you doing?"

Ciel's lips...they were so soft...so sweet...and tender. He tasted so good. Oh, how Sebastian wished this could be real...that it was not something forced and done to save their lives. Slowly he opened his eyes half way, looking at his master still as he felt him speak. He pulled back and breathed softly against those lips that he had just claimed. "I'm saving your life so they don't kill us..." He uttered in contrast to Ciel's statement. Did the boy not understand what was going on? Did he not understand what Mister Rossi meant before?

Once Ciel had dreamed…that Sebastian had kissed him…he had woken up and his sheets had been wet…he wondered what Meilin thought about it then, but then he buried it deep within his ticker-tock heart. No…this couldn't be…it couldn't be happening like this…He didn't know that pictures had already been taken, and that Mr. Rossi and his cronies were further edging Sebastian on, "Touch him! touch him! Be rougher!!"

'My poor master...' Sebastian thought to himself, but then closed his eyes tightly for a second in a sharp wince at the others yelling at him on what to do. To do...how could he bring himself to do this?

Silently then, without saying another word, Sebastian locked his gloved fingers tighter within the boy's hair. Instead of gently leaning his head back, he jerked him and harshly pressed his lips back against Ciel's. His mouth cupped over his and making it obvious to the other's that he was now attempting to force his tongue into the process.

"Sebastian…don't!" The younger begged, feeling the others breath against his mouth. His chest was rising and falling in panic. "This isn't saving my life it's killi- mmff.." his voice was broken as the other grabbed his head and kissed him roughly, causing the Earl to wince in pain as his hair was pulled, and let out a soft cry. Ciel shut his eyes tightly and tried to turn his head, but Sebastian's fingers were keeping his head in place.

Meanwhile, the demon's other hand started to travel down Ciel's body until he reached his belt. The slide of his fingers was timid and yet selfish at the same time? Why was this? He felt so precious from under his touch, and yet it made him feel sick.

With parted his lips again, Ceil let out another protest, "No Sebastian…!" His body trembled violently as the others tongue gained entrance to his hot mouth, and tears rose to his eyes. He suddenly went limp. This brought back memories, unlocked things he had repressed…he could see them, their faces, their hands on him, touching him, hurting him, over and over…

How many times was it since Sebastian had dressed and undressed his master? His fingers worked against the boy's belt more, the sound of the clicking was so loud. It never felt like this before when he removed his clothes. So clearly he could feel Ciel's resistance and those words telling him 'no', and 'don't'. In his head he was screaming at himself to stop and to comfort Ciel...because...he was his master and he had to do what he said. So, if The Earl wanted him to stop, then he should have...right? Maybe he could have least whispered more into Ciel's ear to comfort him, or to explain to him more what was happening, but yet he didn't...his body wasn't listening to his head. It was like the demon lust within Sebastian had awoken.

No, Sebastian wasn't like them…Sebastian, his savior couldn't turn into them. Ciel felt the hands travel down his body to his belt. He shivered in repulsion, he was so broken that Sebastian's gentle touch in his mind was greedy and rough…Sebastian was fading…and all he could see was them…The Earl screamed then, and struggle violently against his butler.

What the hell was what with this situation? The butler normally had so much control over himself, and yet he found himself ripping down Ciel's pants, tearing his shirt apart, and taking over his mouth as his greedy tongue explored every corner of the smaller's mouth. Ciel's tongue was so soft and his mouth was so small compared to his own. Sebastian could both feel and hear the way that the younger was breathing in his panic, but he did not reframe. The demon's breath deepened, but it was due to rather a different reason than that of fear.

Ciel trembled in fear and revulsion as the other ripped his clothes with a strength he had only seen the demon display in battle. For a split second, he remembered this was Sebastian and he once more begged, "Sebastian! Stop, that's an order!" He barely had time to speak those words and get a breath before the others mouth claimed his once more, greedily. He felt his mouth get ravaged, bruised, his tongue assaulted by the other, and cried out against the others lips and shivered as the cold air of the dungeon hit his exposed skin.

"That's right, rip off his clothes!" One of the men yelled as another image of snapped. The click of the camera...Sebastian tried desperately to cling onto reality, to bring himself back and out of this demonic state...

Tears slid down the Earl's cheeks, and he could do nothing, nothing, just like before in the past. He had lived this already, only those men had never claimed his mouth this way, he felt like he couldn't breathe and his chest raised and fell in heavy pants.

He heard the camera clicking and his whole body flushed in humiliation, he arched his body in an attempt to get away, struggled against the binds, furiously, as the tears continued to slide down his visible eye, blurring his vision. Sebastian, his savior and his loyal butler: What happened? He felt himself falling once again…into the pain ....once again…

Oh god of hell, Ciel was so exotic tasting. Sebastian couldn't wait for the day he would get to consume his soul! It wasn't just his soul though; it was his body and his current living state that Sebastian had wanted.

Yes, he had always wanted it since he laid his eyes on him. Now that he actually had him, his devil was showing. "Mn~" The demon hummed pleasantly into the other's mouth as he was told to stop. Even though word 'order' didn't cease him. His own mouth watered from the delicious taste, his hot saliva passing into Ciel's throat. Some of it seepng down between their chins and dropping onto the child's neck with the sloppy and hungry way the butler osculated his master.

His eager hands continued to strip at the boy then, effortlessly pulling his shoes off and then sliding his fingers up those feeble legs and to the inside of Ciel's thigh. His own body started to grow impatient as his pants became increasingly tight with the closer he got to his doll's special place. There was...something though...Sebastian felt a dampness against his face--tears?

It was like being splashed with cold water to wake up, as the saying goes. With a heavy breath the demon pulled back, panting and with a trail of saliva connecting between master and servant. "M...master..." Sebastian stared at the younger with a horrified look, his face pale...more than it normally was. "I..."

"Hey! No stopping!" a voice yelled.

Ciel shut his eyes tightly, body tensing and hips jerking inadvertently at the others fingers as they slid up his thigh. He was feverish at this point, and slightly delirious. He panted heavily as the others mouth left his own, swallowing the saliva that seemed to burn his mouth. His porcelain cheeks tainted crimson, body flushed and lips swollen from the ravaging kisses. Saliva on his throat, his neck. His eye looked at Sebastian, but they didn't see him, all they saw were those men, touching him, grabbing him, "No…no…stop…" he repeated this over, and over. They were touching him, entering his body shook as he sobbed, tears streaming down his cheeks.

The eye that looked up at Sebastian was no longer that defiant, blue orb, but showed all his fear, his pain, his past. In the background an extremely turned on Mr. Rossi demanded, "Keep going! He's already naked, you can't stop now!" The other inhabitants of the room also echoed this.

'If only Sebastian would do that to me…' Grell thought to himself.

The room was spinning. Looking at Ciel like that, looking at him in that state and knowing that he had made him like this...it made Sebastian dizzy. It...shouldn't have mattered though! Yet...it did so much. "Master...please..." He swallowed over a lump in his throat. Rapidly his eyes glanced around for the younger's clothes, but they were all torn...He had done that? Quickly he slid off his jacket and went to blanket it over the other when their captors started to yell about not stopping. Sebastian turned to give them a glare.

The man at the camera laughed.

"That look will never do! Smile for the camera!" Then Mister Rossi sighed in an irritated state and stepped close to them.

"You don't think I'm serious about this?" He aimed the already ready gun at Sebastian and shot a bullet through his shoulder without warning. The demon winced and growled, his hand automatically going to cling to the wound. That made him mad...he should have been easily able to dodge that..."Now, if you don't get to it, I'll shoot the kid's brains out in three...two...o--"

Sebastian placed himself back over Ciel within that second, but at that moment it was more of a guard. Still, there he was, looking down at the boy eye to eye. "You shouldn't cry..." He tried his best to smile at him.

This situation was unacceptable. Sebastian had always made sure that the two of them were the ones in control. Now...now this all felt like they were at the bottom of the chain. No, that wasn't so though! He was only doing this all, performing what the Italians wanted, so that Ciel was protected. It was only because he was in no state to release death upon them thanks to being poisoned. The demon had already decided that he would end this though once the tainted water was out of his system and his strength was back...or maybe...they were all watching them very closely. With one bullet his master's life could end. He would fail then and lose his ranking...If only Ciel could lift that simple yet complex piece of fabric that covered his eye--their contract--without it being seen...

Ciel managed to control his sobs. Inside, he was like a vase that had been broken and put back together again carefully, but at cost of losing the rose it held so preciously. But then the very craftsman that had put the vase back together had thrown its creation to the ground and watched it smash. He stopped sobbing when he felt the cloak on him, and he snapped out of his delirium. Hearing the despicable voice of Mr. Rossi, something in his gut erupted…a feeling he had kept at bay…for 2 years…The Earl kept his eyes closed, he didn't want Sebastian to see his expression. Sebastian's demonic strength had ripped his clothes, and also the binds that were restraining him. His voice was a barely audible whisper, as a now free hand reached up, to clutch at the other's shirt. "Se….Sebastian…" his voice was so cold, so cold. "The Phantomhive name…the reputation," the hand against the others shirt trembled, though not from fear- "it's all I have left…of them…If that is taken away from me, then I am better off dead…" He grabbed his eye patch and tore it off then, opened his eye, the contract. He stared at Sebastian with intensity, eye like blue flames filled with what looked like…hatred. "DON'T FORGET YOUR CONTRACT! YOU MUST OBEY ME. …Sebastian, I don't care what happens to me but, destroy that camera!"

There was a wide look in Sebastain's gaze as he could feel that delicate body from under him shaking. Some of the other men started to yell, but their voices were muffled. All that Sebastian paid attention to at that moment was that fidget voice from Ciel.

A sharp breath passed out from his lips when that voice rose at him. _'You must obey me...'_ The previous seconds flashed in the demon's head again of how it took Ciel three times to tell him to stop touching him before he actually did...How much could he try to convince himself that he was only fondling him for the sake of his life? Now was not the time to fret about that...he would not mess up again! And...their power between them had been activated..."Yes...my lord." Sebastian said, but it was without a smile as it normally was with.

Sitting up straight, he pulled off his gloves; the right one removed by pulling with this teeth. The mark of the contract awoke upon his hand.

Mister Rossi yelled, "No! You're not doing this!" He fired his gun then. But, just as he pulled the trigger towards them, the lights to the basement shut off. Sebastian had acted.

Within a split second, he picked Ciel up, taking the bullet instead. Ciel flinch, because any touch was enough to send him back to his delirium, to bring back his attackers. However, he was snapped into reality as he heard the bullet hit flesh and bone, and he knew that Sebastian was injured. Had been injured, for his sake. Silently Sebastian put Ciel in a small broom closet to hide him away.

Within the closet Ciel thought for a split second, he got the hope that this had all been a delusion, that the lips and hands tearing at him earlier had been a fake Sebastian's, and that the real Sebastian had now come to save him. He could not harbor these thoughts long though, as he felt feverish and had been for some time, and quickly passed out in the closet.

The men questioned and panicked among themselves about the lights. Their efforts to turn them back on failed. Mr. Rossi was angered and still turned on from the earlier display. This was not a good combination. As the lights were turned off, he quickly lit his lighter and fumbled around, using the feeble glow form the flame for the place where the two captors had been lying, only too find it empty. "Mamma mia! They are gone! Quickly, find them!"

Then the others all began echoing this: Italians running here, running there. It was a mad house. Except for Grell…

The drag shinigami was still in his corner, hunched over, stroking his chainsaw, imagining it was Sebastian.

"Sebast…Sebast…Romeo. No! Sebastian is mine, no matter what!" Grell wouldn't let him be with that Phantomhive brat; he wouldn't let HIS Sebastian's lips touch someone else's.

The demon butler knew this had to be done quick. The yells and the scrabbling of the Italians to find them...no, to find his master, was more dangerous than any weapon. Even though his demonic power was stimulated now, that didn't take away the fact that there was still that horrible water in his system. He was too slow. There was no giving up though! With one foot into the chaotic crowed, he started to do his job. It took more effort than normal, but he won in getting a couple of Italians on the floor....that's all it was, a couple though. "Master..." Sebastian uttered in a heavy breath. All he could see was Ciel...he had to do this for him! There was no way he could fail!

Then...there was Mister Rossi lightly lit by his lighter. Sebastian eyed him, his orbs glowing red in the darkness. Without lifting a finger, the flame of the lighter became that of an explosion. The fire engulfed Mister Rossi. The man screamed in pain. Now for the rest of them…

Shifting on his heel, he turned around to continue his slaughter, when something warm and wet met with his body. He knew what it was right away--blood. It covered him like a wave in the ocean. Eyes widened and his lips parted. Some of the fluid got into this mouth. The taste was so fine but yet disgusting at the same time. It only took a second for him to realize what had happened. The sound of that chainsaw followed by the undeniable voice of that shinigami. "Grell..." He said the name as he could see the death god's eyes in the dark, glowing just as brightly as his own.

The shinigami pulled the string to his chainsaw scythe, and then sent it flying, but not at Sebastian, who was lurking in the shadows and killing one or two of the Italians as well from the sounds of blood, but at all the other inhabitants of that dark room.

Grell murdered them all, blood flew, screams echoed against the walls….then silence.

The shinigami's face was splattered in blood and he didn't even bother to watch the memories of the Italians as they flew out from their bodies like a cinematic strip. He was staring at the butler. He could see in the dark, he knew where his demon was. "Sebastian! My love, I've killed everyone and now you and the brat are safe. Now…" He moved closer to the closet, "What will you give me in return!?"

They were standing face to face, and Sebastian was placed in a compromising position against his will. His blood boiled from rage, but he kept his composure straight as to not expose himself. With a forced smile, he narrowed his gaze at the other. "I do not have to give you anything in return...we both played our part in this game,...it was your choice to try and play your card, but either way...I still would have won. You just made the path shorter for me getting to the finish line...now, if you'll excuse me." He stepped passed Grell to walk towards the broom closet. Those words that he just said were a low blow, and major slap in the face rather than any thank you.

Grell would not have that! He leapt, and landed right in front of the broom closet, where Ciel still lay, incredibly feverish and unconscious. The shinigami licked his lips as he eyed Sebastian, so beautiful with all that blood on him and his eyes glowing in his favorite colour-- red.

He reached up and raised his chainsaw menacingly, but not towards the butler, instead to the broom closet. "You know my Scythe can cut through wood right, Little Sebast? One slash and it's bye bye, blackbird!" He gave a coquettish smile, "Now, let me ask again, what do I get in return? At least I think I deserve a kiss…"

An extreme look of emotion crossed over the butler's face as he looked at the redhead and heard those repulsive words. There was nothing positive on from Sebastian's face within that expression. Who knows how long he gave Grell that look, but Sebastian made sure not to linger for the sake of his master. All he was concerned with was getting him in his arms....to...bring him back to safety.

The demon broke his contradictory look by breaking his glance away from that sleazy mug of Grell and looked at the threatening chainsaw. "Hmph..." He let out a single breath that was his formation in a smile. "One slash, you say?" He closed his eyes then in a somewhat smug state. "So, it's one kiss or one slash...or...is there a third option?" He slowly stroked his fingers up his tie. He undid it and held it out, clipping it between his thumb and third finger as if to tease Grell of an idea of a strip tease. "One forward thrust from me...one flick…and I could just as easily jam your precious scythe again...do we need a repeat of the movie? Tell me, just how long did it take you to fix your toy last time? Now, step aside...or..."

"My, my, little Sebast. You wouldn't do that to your Juliet would you?"

Juliet...Romeo and Juliet...that was a pathetic story. It showed just how stupid humans were and how weak this so-called love thing made them. Yes. Yes, he would do that to 'his' Juliet indeed. He would do so much more to her as well. He would bend and break her. Juliet would see that there was something far worse out there than not being allowed to be with the 'love' of her life. "Hmph." Sebastian just snorted in all seriousness at Grell. Even though nothing was said, the look now upon his face was lacking any sort of playfullness that was there just a second before.

He could tell that Grell was in thought, and he was probably weighing out each possible outcome in his head. Meanwhile, Sebastain was growing impatient as patient as he always appeared to be. This shinigami stood in the way of his Cleopatra, if relationships were going to be compared to famous couples. That made himself Mark Antony...the two of them were together, ruling and controlling the country...and this angered the Romans and other groups of people who either felt threatened by their power or disapproved of it. This story would have a different ending than the original though...Sebastian would not be as dumb as to believe just anyone in Ciel's death and end up killing himself over it...no, that was quite the twist...as Ciel would die by his own hands when the time came.

Grell cooed, showing less fear then he actually felt. He was remembering his precious chainsaw being jammed, and the unpleasant beating from William.

At this memory, green eyes actually shifted from the demon's smug smile to dart about the room, making sure William wasn't lurking in the corner. It had taken him a good two weeks to fix his precious scythe! Grell could almost hear William's words ringing in his ears, _'One more death that isn't in the schedule from you, Field Agent Grell, and we will simply take away your shinigami status and have you work in the weapons department as a polisher…The thought sent a shiver down the drag's spine.'_

No! He wouldn't risk it. Not yet. From the darkness of the closet, a small, almost inaudible whimper could be heard, and it snapped Grell from his thoughts. He threw his head back and let out a cackle, "Hm…de ja vu! Fine, my little Sebast!" He said stepping to the side. "You win for now…! Let us part with that kiss." The Shinigami swiftly moved forward, lips moving to plant a kiss on Sebastian before he would escape back into his world.

It happened then and the Roman against the Egyptian love placed down his weapon. Sebastian was going to commend the shinigami just when there was no time to even open his mouth to take a breath. Those lips touched his own. Sebastian's eyes shot wide and then flashed red from irritation. He controlled himself though and just stood there, still, without response or engaging in the action back. It was only when Grell was out of sight when Sebastian then did move. "How fowl-" He wiped the back of his hand over his lips. Disgusting.

That's not who he wanted to claim his lips...he--no, those thoughts were not supposed to be there. Without delay, he finally opened the door and stared down at his master. "My dear master..." He got down and gently scooped Ciel into his arms. His stomach twisted a bit at the fact that he was covered in warm blood. "Let us go home..."


	5. Wash Away

The fire…enveloping the manor…the horrible cries…flames…everywhere... the shadows standing in front of him…the hands…the black hands…reaching to him…grabbing...

"NO!!" Ciel's own scream woke him up, he stared wide eyed at the roof of his bed, chest rising and falling as he pants escape his lips, the nightmare still vivid in his mind. He clutched the bed sheets. Whatever traced of the night before had been removed, all blood had been cleaned off and he wore his usual, silk pajamas...as if to erase the very event from existence. But could Julius Caesar ever forget Brutus? The boy laid like that, memories of the previous night beginning to enter his mind like grains of sand.

The groans of his master were heard clearly, and they were just as difficult to ignore. His orders from the start, since the day he engaged with Ciel, his command at the highest was to protect him and make sure he was safe. Keeping the younger within his gasp was following orders...

Everything had just been pushed out of order...things had to go back in line...

And, thats how everything appeared the next morning. Not a single teacup was out of place. Was it like before though, or could everything just have been swept under the carpet? In the end, all that junk was still there...so what was this junk? Was it dirt that was piled up? No, Emotions.

Emotions: how low. It made Sebastion sour. They got in the way of things and messed with what was actually important. That was part of the reason why he liked Ciel, because the boy knew that fact just like a demon did....

Sebastian wore his mask well. His smiling face entered the master's room after knocking on the door with a cart containing the morning tea. "Oh..." He blinked though at seeing that Ciel was already awake. Normally he was the one bring him out of sleep. Clearing his throat, Sebastian looked at the younger, finding it hard to keep the mask on..."Good morning..." He turned his back to go and open the curtains...as it was his job, but it also served in covering his somber expression then. "Today's plans...are..." He cleared his throat again as he went over to pour some of the tea, finding it strangely difficult to speak so smoothly as he normally did. "Orange spice tea, and for breakfast I have prepared French Toast with..."

A motion interrupted Sebastian's words. Ciel rose his hand to rub his eye. Perhaps he wanted to avoid a certain crimson gaze, and Ciel was thankful when Sebastian kept it away. He sat up on the bed, slowly, carefully looking down at the white sheets and the square shadows the window-shape made against them. His hand went to his ring, to trace his thumb over the sapphire there.

The panting had subsided when the Phantomhive butler had entered the room, but the grains of sand? The memory of the horrible night before was vivid in Ciel's mind, and the boy began to tremble slightly, a tight feeling growing in his stomach. He could feel Sebastian's lips on him, the way his clothes had been torn, the way his mouth had been invaded. He shut his eyes tightly, a shiver going through him, and brought an unsteady hand to run small fingers through onyx strands, pushing the memory down. He was an expert at pushing away pain. Did Alice really fall through the rabbit hole? No, he didn't want to believe what had happened.

The smell of the tea drifted to his nose, made the knot in his stomach subside slightly. Everything was as usual. Sebastian was being...Sebastian. If it had been real, would he be acting so casual? "That's fine…" he said, opening his eyes to look straight ahead at some flowers on a vase on his dresser. He didn't look at Sebastian as he waited for his tea. His voice was slightly shaky, less authoritative then usual "T-today's plans?"

Everything was habitual. First get up, get everything ready, sever the tea, inform of the day's tasks, get Ciel dressed...or was it inform of the tasks then serve the tea? Was he supposed to dress Ciel first before anything? Everything was swimming through Sebastian's head at once. As he tried to focus in his head as to what came first, all he could think about was what Ciel must think of him now...

Pouring the tea, Sebastian finally placed his gaze back at his master in hearing the broken way in which he spoke. That was not a good sign...and he also wasn't being looked at. _'What should I do...?'_ He thought to himself, frowning at that line due to the fact that he _always_ seemed to know what to do. Would it be going against the contract to carry on like this in knowing that Ciel was not okay?

As carefully as possible he placed the teacup on the small plate so that he could hand it over. "Mn...today's plans...More invitations arrived...you need to go through them, and some studying is required." Sebastian barely said as he pulled the blanket back from Ciel and then went to give him the tea. Only...it was a mistake in doing both actions at once with the beverage and the cover. With crossing both performances, his hand had not been so steady and the tea was dropped onto both Ciel and the bed.

A sharp gasp and then a loud cry of pain escape Ciel as the hot tea landed on his stomach, leg, splattered over his white night clothes, staining them, burning. His nerves were already heightened, only enhancing the pain as the hot liquid made contact. He winced and without thinking, or waiting for Sebastian, grabbed the ends of his nightshirt to lift it up over his head, removing it. Then began wiping furiously at the tea on his skin, which was already reddening.

Sebastian's eyes widened as he stood frozen in spot. This NEVER happened before. He was not a mess up like this...and since when did he tremble? _'What the hell is wrong with me!?'_ To make matters worse, he just stood there as if time had stopped...without even uttering an apology...

"Idiot!" The boy barked at his butler as he bit his lip to keep the tears in his eyes from sliding down his cheeks. He scrambled off the bed and jerked a flushed face to the butler, only to find Sebastian just staring…just staring at him. He wasn't even helping! Suddenly Ciel felt anger, boiling inside of him, anger …rage…at Sebastian. The pain, it all mixed together in his mind, and closed the gap between master and servant and began pounding at Sebastian's chest with his fists, ignoring the burns, saying one word repeatedly, "Idiot!! Idiot! Idiot!!"

Even that noise of distress did not snap Sebastian back. It was when Ciel had taken off his nightshirt where upon Sebastian had flinched for the first time since he had dropped the cup. All his movement was then consisted of a single step backwards as he stared at the bare chest of his master. Images flashed through his head of the previous night...of himself ripping the boy's clothing off like he was just some worthless human to rape and violate...well...wasn't he? Not until the contract was up...He turned his head down in shame, not from spilling the tea...but from the memories.

Desperately he wanted to stop Ciel from the cleaning attempts, to tell him that he would get the sheets and nightwear washed right away...but his throat was tight, blocking any words that may need to come out. He was called an idiot, and it only created more of a shadow over his face. It had not been the first time Ciel had called him an idiot, or stupid, but it was much different now...The word got repeated over and over again as those small fists pounded against his chest.

Still silence swam around the butler as he just allowed for Ciel to 'degrade' him. It was well deserved, but it could not go on...With his demonic swift movements, Sebastian firmly attempted to grab hold of Ciel's wrists to pull his fists away from him. The same lack of expression stayed on his face then as he held him there in place. All in the same abrupt motion, Ciel would find the elder's lips touching against his own--quietly, softly. Was it merely to shut him up?

"Idio-" then the soft, light touch of lips against lips. Ciel froze, his eyes widening fully as time seemed to slow down. For a brief moment, the boy did nothing, his mind trying to register that Sebastian was kissing him, again, his mouth taking in the feel of a demon's lips. Memories of the night before, which also once more filled the small frame, and reaction kicked in. He began to struggle, jerking at his wrists to free them from the devil.

There was so much anger and hatred for him from Ciel...and yet, all Sebastian was feeling for Ciel right now was...love? No, it couldn't have been. This all...wasn't right. It had to be the morning hang over from the holy water that was in him. Yes, that was it...it was messing up his system in more ways than one. Still...these few seconds that he had those young lips within his own were treasured. For a split second, the demon tried to deepen the kiss...but it failed.

His strength was nothing compared to Sebastian's however, so he turned his face to the side, his voice trembling with anger and fear that yesterday's antics were about to be repeated, "What the hell are you doing?!"

Ciel had turned away from Sebastian, and he could feel that squirming for the desire of release. He was yelled at, and he blinked once widely for a second.

A thought struck Ciel like lightening: this is it. Their contract was ended, and the demon would attack him once more…claim him… Ciel's face paled considerably and he took yet another step back. Not yet! It was too soon.

Gently he let go of the boy and stepped back from him with his normal smile, but it was forced. What sort of answer could he give him? "I was..." He paused to turn to the side, a single half-laugh exposed as he raised a hand to brush some of his bangs back. Idly he stared out the window at some morning birds. "I was doing something I wasn't supposed to." He said then and turned back to Ciel, getting on his knee in front of him in a submissive position. He would never lie..."I am sorry, my lord...I was careless and...I assure you, it won't happen again. I shall get your sheets and clothes cleaned at once...please, forgive me." He bowed his head low, waiting for approval...but would it come so easily?

Finally released from the demon's grip, Ciel took several steps back, gaze locked on Sebastian's face, staring at him with intense anger. A fingers rose to his mouth to wipe his lips with the back of his hand furiously. This had been the second time the demon had kissed him.

Ciel stared at his butler, bowed in submission in front of him. A creature of Hell asking for the divine. Ciel's conflicted mind tried to gather the pieces of the puzzle that was Sebastian, trying to keep at bay the fear that existed deep within since that night. Just two days ago, the young Earl had been sure of nothing but that he could trust in this entity in front of him. He wasn't sure anymore. He felt fear. He was afraid of Sebastian. Of the way he kissed him..._of why he kissed him._ Ciel didn't understand. Here was a puzzle he couldn't solve.

But, it should be Sebastian that fears him because he could still only see through one eye. He had paid the sacrifice, and Sebastian could not betray him.

Even though his orb's glance was on his master's feet like the low dog he was suppose to be, Sebastian could still sense every small action from Ciel. He could...he could sense it all, and he could physically feel it. Why did it hurt so bad when that hand wiped away at the kiss he had just given him? Is this how Grell felt when he had done just that in response to being touched with lips that were undesirable? Pft, what did it matter...

The young earl moved forward, his hand reached out for Sebastian's head. Slender fingers tangled in the black strands and he pulled Sebastian's head back slightly, "Sebastian…"he looked down at him, all expression gone from his face, "Have you forgotten our contract? You promised to obey me…and so you must. So listen carefully. I order you to never kiss me again, or to touch me unless it is to save my life, or I ask you too..."he looked down at him, all expression gone from his face, and he spoke his question hung in the air, "…Why...?"

By this time, his eyes were closed and his brow was lifted in a state of hurt...? The expression was not one of happiness. It felt as if everything had frozen over, and if one looked hard enough, they could see their breath in the air...the icy realm lasted all too long. And, it was Ciel's gaze on him that was creating this world...it was broken eventually when that hand touched upon his head. Immediately he perked his eyes open and glanced up at the younger. Those words made him wince. No, he had not forgotten the contract at all...he had just forgotten that he was a demon...which only induced the next piercing question that Ciel asked even more..._'why?'_

Slowly the butler raised his head from its bowed posture but he stayed kneeled down. So many words and thoughts battled at one another at once. What to address first? No matter how much Sebastian wanted to inform Ciel that he had only kissed him the previous night -to- save his life, or that he did not forgot the contract and valued it, or to question him as to what he meant by asking him to kiss him, none of those declarations were as strong as the statement 'because I love you' that directly came as an answer in his head once he was asked why...but no, it couldn't be! Creatures such as him were not capable of this thing called 'love'. No one really was...

Sebastian just stared up at Ciel with his mouth open and a deep look within his eyes as he tried to speak...He could not lie, and yet he didn't know what the answer really was. He wouldn't believe himself that he loved a mere human child.

If Ciel Phantomhive had not been broken, had not lost his belief in love, he would perhaps have seen it somewhere in the crimson orbs looking at him. But, all faith had turn to ashes two years ago, and his own cold blue eye, which never left Sebastian's face, mirrored the ice that had formed around the boy's heart.

Love...and yet...if he was not capable of love, then why did he feel the sensation towards cats like he did? Surely that was something special...that was...that's it! "Because..." He closed his eyes and smirked, letting out a single smug breath as he attained his normal ease back. "Because, you reminded me of a cat at that moment. That is all."

His hand slipped from the others hair as Sebastian finally gave a reply, likening the boy to a cat. For one brief moment he could only blink widely in surprise. Small fingers went to his own head, then, to slide through onyx strands that fell across his forehead as an annoyed sound left his lips. He reminded Sebastian of a cat? He was kissed because he looked like a feline? What was this thing he had with cats? Ciel's eyes closed in irritation. It was so typical…of Sebastian.

Typical...Sebastian...Sebastian, who did everything he was told, who managed the house, the servants, all orders, perfectly, who rushed to save him when Madame Red's blade was about to strike, even at the cost of being hit by Grell's chainsaw….who took him home in his arms after he was kidnapped by the Italian Mafia the first time. …who swore never to betray him…to follow him to the depths of hell until checkmate.

Sebastian, a demon, who, like himself, had no emotions…except a weakness for cats…who he was sure would have saved him even if Mr. Rossi's bullet had struck…who was lost in a blue of memories from last night...who could not lie to him…

So, the question now was...why _did_ Sebastian see a cat every time that he looked at Ciel? Was it because both cats and this particular human were so refined and intelligent? It wasn't just with personality, but with appearance too. Both of them gave off a sort of majestic beauty that captured Sebastian. What was so special about this one boy though that did that? Oh, if only he could treat him like a cat: To hold him in his arms and to pet and stroke him...telling him how soft and beautiful he was. The smile was lost once again at that thought. No...Ciel was still a human...and humans were despicable and low creatures. Still, Sebastian looked at Ciel with the same keen gaze...the same lustful and wanting gaze that he had been...

The earl opened his eyes, turned his back to the butler, his slender arms crossing over his bare chest as he shivered slightly. He remained in that position for quite some time, piecing together the puzzle in his mind. Until, he came to his conclusion in his head. "I'm cold…get my robe."

Sebastian was trapped though. He was bounded with invisible chains to the floor that held him, keeping him from acting upon what he really wanted to do. It was Ciel, his master that had the key to free him too. He had already stepped out of place too much today, and he would not move until the leash was released. It finally was. "Yes, Master..." Sebastian stood up. No time was wasted as he opened the young king's wardrobe. Fetching the robe, he shifted himself behind Ciel so that he could slide the soft robe upon him.

The corner of his lip twitched in hesitation as he double guessed every movement or word that he thought of producing. Things were still out of order, and the demon needed them back in place. "My lord...if I may suggest, you should get dressed for the day rather than wearing your robe...or...I can bathe you to clean the stain of the tea from your skin. That is...unless you do favor something else..."

Ciel stood motionless, except for the bringing back slightly of his arms as the other placed the soft robe on. It felt so warm against his skin, the physical sensation served as a slight distraction from the previous turmoil in his mind and he actually brought a hand up to run his fingers through the fabric. Routine was slowly taking motion once more with Sebastian offering suggestions seemingly for the Master's well-being. The boy blinked rapidly, several times, remembering his burns once more. He looked down at his legs; his knee had a stain, his arm as well, and the skin was red. The childish mouth formed an elegant frown. No, that would not do…

He glanced at Sebastian, or rather, at that vase just behind Sebastian, slight hesitation passing through his young face. The demon had bathed him millions of times before, and yet…

Was it just his imagination, or did Sebastian just notice his own fingers were loom over Ciel for a bit longer than they should have? At this realization, he rapidly but casually removed his touch. It was just because the fabric of the robe was so soft and fine. Yes, Ciel was even feeling it himself. What a laugh...'I will not lie.' He said to himself in his head, and yet he was suddenly lying to himself several times now.

No, routine had taken motion, it would not be halted again, and the master of the Phantomhive household could not be hindered by physical pain from burns. He turned, began walking towards the bathroom, "Yes, get these stains off…they are uncomfortable. Then, I'll have my breakfast in my study..." Ciel commanded.

Sebastian wondered if Ciel noticed his prolonged contact too, or would it be dismissed? Already Sebastian was trying to think of what to say if it was brought up. "I will make my foolery up to you, master." He said in quick response then. "Please, let us go." Sebastian followed his accustomed feet behind his master down the hallway.

Once they reached the washroom, he went over to the bath closet where he took hold of a tray and started to place the washing bottles on it. This consisted of soap, shampoo and rinse, scented bath oil, and soap bubbles. "Would you like lilac scent today?" He turned his glance to Ciel with his smile, as false as it may have been. So hard Sebastian was trying to focus on his work, but his thoughts kept running away from him to places, to dark corners of his mind, that it shouldn't have been. Perhaps demonic lust was just the flaw in being a devil. It was something he rarely acted on though in all his years, for such a thing was mediocre in his opinion. The question did swim in his head if he just needed to get it out of his system...but how could he...to Ciel, his master and love...

"That's fine." Ciel replied curtly to the question about the lilac scent once he entered the washroom. He hovered near the door a minute, sliding his hands into the pockets of his robe, and then walked to the large mirror, looking at his reflection with his back straight, a slight frown curving his young lips. The earl didn't like mirrors, and rarely looked into them. But today he felt an urge to see the contract, to remind himself that it still existed. He gazed into his reflection, with such an intricate design replacing his iris and pupil. _That which is lost…can never return._

A sudden movement from the butler caught his eye, and his attention turned to the demon's form, also reflected in the wide mirror.

Cats are naturally observant creatures. Ciel had made it his own personal game to watch the demon when he was busy with a task, such as now to see if he made any mistakes.

Gazing at Sebastian's reflection, Ciel noticed how black the other's jacket was compared to the white marble of the bathroom floor, and how broad the demon's shoulders were. He watched, almost transfixed, the way a strand of his bangs fell over his face as he bent to reach for the scented oils, and how those gloved hands delicately loaded the tray. Watching Sebastian, Ciel knew it was a bit like watching perfection incarnate.

When had his own fingers risen to graze over his lips? He could still feel the kiss the demon had placed there, which had been so soft he would almost have called it…affectionate. It replayed in his mind as a shiver traveled down his spine and his stomach tightened, which he was certain was from repulsion. The demon must really have a thing for cats.

The boy moved to turn away from the mirror, when he froze as he caught sight of something horrific in its depths. Did his cheeks had the slightest tint of pink to them? Why? Small head quickly jerked away as he gave his back to his reflection and leaned his frame against the counter. And then... Sebastian's lips were on his again in his thoughts. Ciel lowered his eyes to the ground, giving one shake of his head to clear the memory away. Why did it keep repeating? Damn Sebastian! He would make him help Meilin and Bard clean the stables for this one…

Silently the butler placed the tray down on the cart near the tub. Ciel had moved to the counter by then, and Sebastian tried to give him a small comforting smile just before he turned the water on. Diligently he took his jacket off and hung it up so that he could roll his sleeves up. The gloves were also removed, and attentively he placed his left hand under the running water to test the temperature. It had to be just right. "I will make the water refreshing for you so that it will make help with the burns." He closed his eyes with his curved lips and then started to add the oil and bubble bath.

"I want bubbles." Ciel ordered coolly as he glanced down at the tender skin that had been kissed by the tea. He ghosted his fingers over the red marks, wincing slightly. Once more, Sebastian's mouth was on his, the memory so vivid he could feel the burning on his lips when the butler kissed him. Yet, Sebastian was both the fire and the water, his kiss burnt and soothed, all at once. A demon's kiss--pain and pleasure, together.

His head jerked to one side, trying to banish the memory. It was irritating, and unnecessary. Ciel Phantomhive had become an expert in banishing unwanted recollections. Why was this one coming back? Why did his cheeks grow hot each time it did? He suddenly felt the need to punish Sebastian again, and an annoyed sound escaped from his lips, a look of scorn on his face as he turned his head back to the butler, "I hope you can remedy your idiocy from before…" he moved to the bathtub, which had been filled and practically overflowed with bubbles at this point, and stood like a small doll in front of the butler, spreading his hands a bit, waiting to have his robe removed, his unique gaze watching the way the pearl bathtub glimmered in the sunlight.

Everything had to be monitored and watched carefully. There was a precise amount of subject matter of each element that Sebastian had to add to the water so that it was not too much or too little. If only he was thinking in those terms before when it came to his nagging affectionate want for Ciel. He had messed up, he felt, and gave too much at one time. It seemed that he wasn't the only one thinking about the earlier incident again. Taking another glance at his master, he noticed that distant look in his eye again. Ciel was somewhere else but here...There was also that added color to his face again. Sebastian knew it: He was thinking about him and what he had done. He could practically feel it all over again just how Ciel was...this was because they were linked together. They experienced the same thoughts, feelings, and even emotions sometimes...so...did that mean Ciel was longing for something deeper between them just lie he was? No...that had to be only wishful thinking...then again...

Sebastian was pulled out of the never-ending conflict in his head at that voice. "Ah...yes." He turned to focus back on the bathtub, giving it a bit more soap bubbles for his master's liking. After a moment it was filled and the butler turned the water off.

...Those words the other spoke...Sebastian cought himself frowning, but he was quick to fix that as he walked behind Ciel to remove his robe. "Of course, my lord..." He said, it taking much effort to keep his voice straight. "Have I not informed you that I would amend my actions already?" He slowly started to slide his hands down the sides of Ciel's body. Was this without realization? He stopped when he reached the robe tie, and his hands wrapped around his waist as he stated to pull the knot free.

Ciel yearned to escape into the depths of the water, to drown the dull pain of his burns, and also to sink the memory that seemed to be haunting him that morning. It passed through his mind again.

A ghost of a smile curved the child's lips. He sensed his demon was struggling to keep his composure, and this thrilled Ciel. Why did he feel the need to torture Sebastian at times? To bend him to his will, punish him, test his loyalty to the very limit of its endurance? To remind him who was Master?

Undressing his master: Sebastian had done this a million times, but there was something a bit more idle and seductive about it now. Sebastian wanted to be de-roboing him for something else other than a bath. He really needed to get this demon lust out of his system..."Or are you just...eager for my penance? Shall I make it up to you right now?" He leaned in close, pressing his body against Ciel's back as he lingered himself over to utter his next words in his ear, "What is it that you desire, my lord?" Now that the robe was lose, Sebastian's hands continued their job in undressing the other. His fingers hooked around the waistline of the child's undergarment, but that was as far as he got.

Whenever Sebastian's hands were on him, whenever he spoke, as he did then, talking about penance and servitude as if he could read Ciel's earlier thoughts, the child had a feeling at the pit of his stomach that that master wasn't him at all.

He loathed that feeling…

Ciel shivered slightly as words were whispered in his ear and hands moved to his undergarments. Ciel´s body felt suddenly hot, and his pulse was speeding up. Was he getting ill again? He drew in a breath and spoke in a harsh tone, "I desire…for you to hurry up, my burns are uncomfortable, and I am cold standing here! You're going as slow as an old man."

Things were starting to get dangerous. The demon inside Sebastain was about to cross the human boarder. Once he stepped over that line, it would be a whole new country. But ah, he was not allowed to...or more so, he was not allowing himself to just yet. Some would say that the eyes were the gate to the soul, and in Sebastian's case, they indeed were. The color of them was not ocean blue, but an ocean that was stained with blood. It was a color that was not human at all...His red orbs looked over Ciel's shoulder.

His leer leaked down that small figure. Oh? What was this? Even though he was behind the boy, he could still clearly feel everything within his body. Ciel's heart started to pound hard, and he become increasingly warm within the same second. Sebastian's blood-stained eyes narrowed as a sneaking smile found him. All within the same second of Ciel becoming heated, he was barked at and 'insulted'--a cover up. Still, Sebastian responded as a good servant would. "Yes, my lord..." his fingers latched around the undergarment more and he slid them down the boy's perfect sleek legs.

The butler moved himself downward along with the briefs until they met with ankles, and there he waited for Ciel to step out of them and into the tub. However, Sebastian was quick to speak at that moment. He looked up at the boy with the same devious smile upon his expression. "Master...you might want to wait a moment to get in the water...because you are suddenly warm...and your heart is beating so fast~" His words were sly as if he knew very well what he was doing in speaking such a thing out loud. "The water may be too hot for you now if you are like this...is something the matter...? Or are you just that...upset with me?" He turned his head up, having an utopian view of his master's gorgeous round rear. He looked so appetizing, and Sebastian just wanted to eat him up right then and there...in more ways than one.

Ciel's eyes widened and he turned his head back, sapphire and contract moving to stare down at Sebastian. How could he know what he was feeling? Oh yes, the contract… Something about the way the other's orbs were looking at him, about the smile that curved his perfect lips, sent another shiver down the earl's spine. He had been looked at that way before…As their eyes remained locked, Ciel felt something then in the pit of his stomach…a nagging want, and it made him uncomfortable and felt…strange. The blush deepened and startled, he turned his face quickly to the bathtub. "Don't be stupid. I am fine…" Back stiff, he gave an elegant frown and stepped into the tub.

The warm water feeling delicious as he slid into the bubbles, all the way down, and stayed down for as long as his tiny lungs would allow, wanting to drown out everything, memories of last night, the kiss that still seemed to burn his lips, Sebastian's face, his hands…everything.

He then came back up, hair sticking to his face, dripping bubbles down his cheek and chest as he leaned his back against the tub. His eyes remained closed. He was thinking about something that troubled him, and his lips pursed. However, he kept his thoughts secret, though his face paled considerably. Opening his eyes after a few brief moments, he looked up at the butler and raised a hand to stop him from beginning to bath him. "Sebastian… I am giving you the day off."

Things got turned upside down for the demon. Just as he was about to take hold of the bath cup and make a comment about how he wouldn't have to wet his head now thanks to Ciel going under the water, he heard those words. Yes--those words that shattered him from the inside out.

His scarlet eyes widened and his mouth dropped just a little. The day off? That was the ultimate degrade. It was really saying that Ciel was very unhappy with him..."M...Master..." He cleared his throat at hearing himself stumble the single word he spoke so many times. "I....may I suggest that I not take the day off, today? Because...it is clear you are not feeling well in one sense or another...and you had a rough day yesterday due to...that is, I feel I should keep an eye on you for your well being especially today..." Maybe he could convince him otherwise...maybe if he behaved really well now, Ciel would change his mind.

Listening to the stream of stuttering words escaping his demons lips, the boy raised a hand into the air, watching the drops of water and bubbles roll down his youthful skin, over the now soothed burns, back into the tub. He kept his thoughts once more hidden behind a stoic expression, though the corners of his lips did twitch a bit as the butler spoke about his well-being. The child brought his knees up to peek through the surface as he slid down into the tub slightly, arching his head back to rest it on the tub. He looked at Sebastian through wet bangs, one eyebrow rising in thought.

Sebastian didn't want a day off? It seemed that routine and aesthetics were going back into place, and just as Sebastian's mirth and desire had faded a bit, the gnawing in his stomach subsided slightly. The connection was always there. "Do you really feel it is for my well being that you not take the day off?" he stared into the others face, with a shadow passing through his features, "Is my well-being your priority, Sebastian?" An impatient breath as he lowered lashes and added, almost hesitantly, "...you can start bathing me." Loyalty should be rewarded.

This was really like being tossed into the fires of Hell. His whole body started to feel hot as he stood there, but Sebastian remained to be a winning actor in his composition. That is, except for a slight jerk of his shoulders becoming stiff when Ciel leaned his head back to him. The strain on his face softened a bit as he took the sight in of his master. He looked so wonderful like that--with his hair all wet and those dove-like droplets of water that laid on his skin. It was an image that Sebastian always enjoyed whenever he bathed Ciel.

This sort of affable feeling did not last long as the other spoke to him. Each word was like a dagger. Sebastian's lips pressed tightly together, and his hand gripped the bath cup firmly. He had to be careful not to break it. His words were being questioned...Another laugh and smile then. It really shouldn't have been of any surprise that Ciel knew when he was beating around something.

Gently he set the cup back down and poured the shampoo within his bare hands. Once he was given permission to bathe him, Sebastian did right away. Not only because he wanted to prove that he was up to doing his job, but he also jumped at the chance to place his hands back on his master. "Yes." He answered then as he wavered his hands carefully and gently through Ciel's hair. "Your well-being is my highest priority, as that is our contract." He slowly stroked his hands down the back of his head to make sure every inch was covered. "So, in a sense I do not want to take the day off for your well-being...but also..." He took hold of the bath cup again and dipped it in the water. One hand rose to shield over Ciel's face as he poured the water over his head to rinse the shampoo. "...there is another reason." He continued to smile, but was that a fallacy of expression? He was smooth to apply the soap to the brush where he gently started to rub it don the boy's chest.

Eyes closed and he actually sighed softly as the warm water cascaded through his hair and back. The sensations proved a good distraction from the shadows in his heart and mind, and Ciel lost himself in them. "What's the reason?" he murmured, leaning back once more against the tub, flinching just slightly as the other began to rub the soft sponge on his smooth chest, and he nodded his small head slightly, another murmur escaping his lips, his voice softer and less icy than normal.

How Sebastian desperately wished to be washing him without the sponge. That was a thought that entered his head every bath time, but it was not as easily pushed away this time around...If only he could caress his master just a little...His jaw clenched tightly as he tried to sustain himself. One eye winced a little when he was questioned as to what the reason was.

Images invaded his head again of late night fantasies. It was easy to match Ciel's murmur up with a different reality. Sebastian's eyes had fallen shut, and he was now watching that false reality. "Mn~" He hummed within his throat as he started to slide the sponge south. The demon curved his fingers around it just so precisely so that just the tips of his fingers would glide against the younger's flesh with his washing. It was his devil selfishness taking over him again. Why was Sebastian so easily turned to the midnight side of his soul with Ciel like this?

Still, his words were not with answer to the question as to what his reasoning was. He knew very well that he should respond to his master, but his mind was elsewhere...so was his scrubbing hand. Now leaned forward against the back of the tub, he drifted the brush down more to Ciel's navel, and then to his inner thigh and between the boy's legs as he would advance to 'wash' him, rubbing back and forth...or at least, that was Sebastian's intentions.

The warm water, the caressing bubbles, the soft sponge traveling down his body felt so nice, that Ciel actually made a contented sound, and he forgot that Sebastian was supposed to respond to his question. But then, something changed. His body was feeling warmer, his cheeks flushed, and that gnawing need in his stomach grew. Brows furrowed slightly and he turned his head to the side, eyes still closed as Sebastian's sponge hovered near his crotch. Was it Ciel's imagination, or was the demon giving him a longer bath then usual…? He flinched and his hips arched into the hand slightly

Why...why did it have to be like this? Why did he have to be so attracted to such a child...? Sebasian's imagination was taking over him more and more with each passing second. He could see it all so clearly--Ciel laying next to him, blanketed in a thin layer of perspiration ...actually smiling for once as his cheeks blushed the sweetest color of rose. They had been making love all day long and now through the night. The scent of lilac filled the room as that was the sweet smell of the lotion they used. He had rubbed it all over Ciel just like he would bathing him in soap. How wanting and accepting his tight little hole was of the lotion....and now he was adding it over the boy's cock so that his hand could slide and caress him easier as he would enter inside of him. "Mmn...master..."

Ceil's eyes shot open, small hand coming up to shove the demons hand away, a grimace forming on his suddenly flushed, embarrassed face "Sebastian! What are you doing?"

His pants were becoming tight as he started to release the bath sponge from his grasp so that his hand and fingers could have all the glory. The younger had a slight reaction to his touch too, that only seemed to encourage the demon. Just as Sebastian was about to let go of the brush, his hand was shoved away and he was yelled at. Instantly he opened his eyes, wide, and drew his hand completely out of the water...dropping the sponge in the process. He stared at the younger with a look of dread while his face paled almost to white. In slow motion he raised his previously washing hand and stared at it as if he couldn't believe what he had just tried to do as it was so out of line and unlike him not to think like this. "What is wrong with me..." He whispered to hismelf in a dry voice, though it was probably heard. "Master...I...." He swallowed tightly and glanced back to the boy...and here he was going to try and prove himself worthy of not taking off...

"Sebastian…?" Startled, Ciel stared at his demon not for the first time that morning with his body trembling slightly in the water. Then, his expression changed, shadows passed through his young features and he paled almost as much as the butler.

There was no longer pleasure circulating through him. Sebastian just stared at the younger, feeling like he was worse than a human. How...how could he have lost control like this? How could he have touched his master in such a means after knowing full well what he had been through? Oh, Sebastian knew how quite well...but he did not want to believe it. It was because he wanted Ciel Phantomhive. He yearned or him and craved to feel his body inside of his. Was it specially Ciel though? Or was it just because of this plaguing sexual drive that demons were cursed with?

For an instant, Sebastian's form changed to a shadow, a leering, lurking shadow with its hands outstretched towards him. Somewhere deep inside, the icy walls were growing in his heart. _'Sebastian is like those men,'_ Ciel thought.

But was he? Ciel had pushed his hand away and he had stopped, the shadows never stopped. Sebastian's touch was diffirent. The boy reached up and dug his fingers through his wet hair, eyes shutting tightly, shoulders hunching, as though warding off invisible attackers. It was so confusing. He suddenly wanted the demon out of his sight, and his voice mirrored his frozen insides, "Go. Sebastian, go. Take the day off, I don't want to see you today." His head jerked up, eyes wide once again to show the contract as he actually yelled " THAT'S AN ORDER!!"

"Master...I..." He tried to speak again, wanting desperately to apologize. What good would it do him now though? He could clearly see the way Ciel was shaking within the depths of the water. That quivering could have been for more than one reason. It was like he was about to explode at him any moment...and sure enough the yelling voice came. Sebastian's brow forward and he glowered as he placed his head down and put his hand over his chest. "Yes...my lord..." He said in quite the opposite manner in which he normally did when he was given and order. Without a peep he took his gloves and jacket. With a final low bow, the butler left the room then. This was the ultimate shame: Everything he had just done within this morning alone. In the end, it was probably better he not see his master for this one day in order to keep himself from doing anything more that he shouldn't have done. He needed to get himself under control...but how?


	6. Demon or Human?

_A/N: I would really like to thank everyone for your lovely comments on our story. We appreciate them all. _

_Pleased be advised that this chapter gets rather graphic. It contains sex, blood and violence. Perhaps it should not be read by those with weak stomachs ^_^;_

_Continue to enjoy~ and more to come!_

What a strange feeling, not having Sebastian by his side as he went to his office, looked through his papers. There was a letter from Queen Victoria… small digits ran through the paper, and then with an annoyed sound he put the letter aside. How queer, to not be able to call Sebastian and ask him when lunch was ready, or to give him sweets.

How troublesome, the looks he got from bard and Meilin, and the prying questions.

Sebastian. His mouth was on him again, his hands. Once more Ciel brought his hands to dig fingers into his hair, elbows propped up on the smooth wood of his desk, eyes shutting tightly to banish the memory.

Sebastian. His pawn. His eye moved to the nearby chess set and he frowned. The small boy folded his arms, suddenly buried his face within their warmth "No..." And he stayed that way, the entire day, telling Meilin, Bard and Finny repeatedly to leave him be each time they knocked on the door with a question. His desire to escape and the fact he was still recuperating from last night's fever accounted for him until he eventually did find slumber.

***

"Master..." Sebastian's bare fingertips stroked over the framed picture he had of Ciel in his room. He touched against the smooth glass of the portrait like he would if the boy was actually there...and how he wished he was. With a sigh he turned away, staring at his wardrobe. What should he do now? Ciel had made it quite clear he did not want to see him for the day. Should he just lock himself up in his room? How childish...and yet, it's not like he could be out and about in the mansion either. Again, the idea invaded his head that he needed something...to just make this all go away. Women were always ogling at him. It would be easy to pick up anyone, but surely he wouldn't settle for something as dirty as a prostitute...then again, just the idea of thinking about engaging in such an act with someone made him feel sick. Then...how come it made him feel so different when he thought about making love to Ciel? That was the other problem, too. It was always 'love making', and never just 'fucking' when it came to The Earl in his thoughts. "Tch..." He snorted at himself and started to get change.

Not having the privilege to wear his butler attire, he was stuck with just putting on his slacks and a button down shirt with his tie. Sebastian decided that he would just go for a walk; as some fresh air would do him well to clear his mind. Skillfully he made his way out of the mansion grounds without being seen. He wore his long leather jacket with his black gloves.

London: The demon walked down the streets feeling very...empty. It made him cringe. He had spent a lot of time alone, and only a short while was he with Ciel...yet it felt so wrong without him. "Stop it..." He raised a hand to press against his temples. It was like everywhere he looked he saw his master's face...everything reminded him of him...there was a tug on his jacket then.

"E...excuse me sir...would you please...be so kind as to give something so that I may eat tonight...?" An obviously poor child looked up at him as he held out his hand for some pounds. His eyes were blue and his hair was a special shade of darkness...Sebastian was instantly reminded of Ciel...His eyes narrowed at him in a sort of dangerous sense.

"Sir...?"

"How would you like to make enough money to buy a town house?" Sebastian said, his voice straight and almost deep. The boy's eyes widened and he smiled.

"That would be wonderful!"

"Good...all you have to do is come with me..."

Hours passed.

What time was it now? Oh well...it didn't matter. It was dark… The boy, which Sebastian didn't even care to learn his name, cried out, "Ah! S-sir!" He moaned as Sebastian pressed into him more. He held the slender boy with his grip and pounded him hard up and down along his pulsing member. How long had he been at it for now? It was all night...and still he wasn't satisfied. The hay around them was covered in sweat and semen. "No....call me Sebastian!" He growled as if he had said that several times now. The child nodded and pathetically cooed the name.

A nighttime awakening. The office had been plunged into darkness, only the moonlight playing eerily against the room. Ciel glanced at the grandfather clock: Midnight already?

"I'm going on a walk." This was said in the usual cool voice that was Ciel Phantomhive's, only this time it was directed at three rather dumbfounded-looking servants. They were still awake from their overwhelming concern.

"Alone?" Finnian's eyes grew wide, "where's Sebastian?"

Ciel brought a hand to his forehead, closing his visible eye as if needing a moment to digest Finnian's idiocy.

"He's got the day off how many times does he have to tell you?" Bard spoke up. Ciel turned onhis heel,his cane making clicking noises as he walked through the large vestibule and out the door, leaving the three servants chattering and bickering.

The cool night air ruffled his black tresses and his cape, but it felt welcome against his cheeks. Ciel glanced up at the night sky, which was filled with stars and he sighed softly.

Having slept all day, he was wide awake, and he began to walk in no particular direction through his large estate gardens, the perfume of roses thick in the musky night air. For once he had a childish expression on his face, his lips forming a slight pout as he began his walk. Was it loneliness? He gazed at the strange way Finnian had clipped the bushes, at how eerily green the glowing grass looked in the moonlight. It was rather long… "Tell Finnian he needs to cut…" the boy stopped. Who was he speaking too? His pawn was not with him, and it was better that way. Like lightning the memory of the kiss was vivid in his mind again. He blushed furiously, allowing himself to do this since he was alone.

A faint curse suddenly escaped his lips, hands clenching at his sides. How ridiculous he was behaving! Phantomhives didn't blush and get lonely. Shaking onyx stands, he began walking again, listening to the sound of the crickets and the crunching of his boots against the pebbled walkways…then another noise, a strange, low cry. Muscles tensed. Where was it coming from? The boy's cat-like curiosity kicked in and he began to walk towards the stables, eyes widening as the noises became louder. Being the Queen's watchdog made one eternally suspicious. He quickly removed his shoes and stockings, as bare feet were harder to hear.

"Oooh...oooh..."

Again the low voices. He felt a flicker of fear, and suddenly wished Sebastian was there.

Still, he moved to the stable doors, slipped through them, looked up, and parted his lips in a mute gasp.

He wanted to throw up.

He wanted to scream.

He wanted to cry.

He wanted to run.

He couldn't tear his eyes away.

Sebastian growl echoed against the walls of the stable. He was on top of someone, moving together, with a strange, contorted faced. Ciel's hand moved to cover his mouth, his visible eye wide. It was a boy…they were…he knew what they were doing. His startled mind was screaming at him to stop them, to say something, but all Ciel could do was watch, watch the act that disgusted him most. It was as if he was possessed. As if some dark energy in that room had wrapped around his legs and immobilized them.

It continued. And, Ciel watched, a spectator in this hideous dance, unable to tear his eyes away though he desperately longed to run. His eye only looked at Sebastian, not at the other. The demon had a look on his face that he had when he had fought Grell, that same frightening, intense, murderous look. Ciel finally shut his eyes, and the moans of pleasure coming from the two seemed to reverberate in his small body…his body felt hot and his stomach tightened…

Those cries and noises, something that should have been so delightful to one's ears only made Sebastian scrowl. The boy may have looked like Ciel, but he didn't sound like him. Not only that, he didn't feel like him or smell like him either. That was pissing Sebastian off...because....he wanted this to truly be Ciel. It was hard to imagine him as such with all these things in the way.

"Ahh! Oh...S-Sebastian!" The child howled more, and Sebastian bucked into him harder in response for some more continuing seconds. Damnit, this wasn't working! He stopped but stayed within the other's tight cavern. The nameless boy blinked and looked up to the butler. "Nh...why'd you stop...?"

His lip twitched slightly, he hoped he wouldn't he to resort to this...With a shaky hand he reached into his trousers pocket. The demon remained dressed but with his fly and shirt open. It was the boy who was completely in the flesh. "Here-put this on." He gave the other an eye patch, and the boy did as instructed. This was what he was getting paid to do after all...to just do what Sebastian wanted and to not ask questions. Though...that didn't mean there wasn't a questioning look on the child's face.

"How lovely..." Sebastian smiled for what felt like the first time since he had brought the boy here. His hand stroked the kid's face and then all the way down his body to where he fisted around his cock. This made the young one moan all over again. "Mn..." Sebastian released his own small noise of pleasure then as he picked up his rhythmical ministrations again. Almost violently his lips met with the other's, groaning and panting into his mouth. "Mas....Ciel..." He said, having no idea that his master was actually there...watching them. He was too wrapped up within this degrading waltz.

Everything that Sebastian was feeling, Ciel also felt to an extent. The other's released lust had sent their connection out of control. When Sebastian felt frustration, waves of frustration would pass through Ciel's body, when the other felt pleasure, Ciel would feel weak and arch his hips into his hands and he panted softly.

It was as if Ciel was watching this scene from somewhere else, locked in a cage, watching the way Sebastian grinded into the boy, watched the way his own hand rubbed furiously at the aching between his legs, hips bucking as his eye glazed over....it felt so strange...it hurt...

'No…stop!! This is horrible and wrong, Sebastian…s- stop this! haa… I order you…nnn… What am I doing? I don't want to do this! STOP!!'

But it was useless. The pain built up until he came into his hand and dropped weakly onto the floor, his chest rising and falling, breathless. He stared ahead, feeling dizzy, longing to rise but with that force keeping him there, with his hand sticky and warm. He watched as Sebastian put the eye patch on the other boy, stiffed and flushed furiously as he witnessed the way Sebastian manhandled him, kissed him. And the earl in his cage knew then, what he perhaps had known all along--Sebastian desired him.

The kisses, the bathtub scene, it all replayed in his head. Ciel had tried to ignore it, and even still he tried to repress the reality but it was impossible. How could he when Sebastian was moaning his name right then? He shivered violently, hugged himself then, head lowering, the demonic energy still throbbing in his own veins. What sick game were they playing? The King was being protected to be destroyed in the end…

The demon bit and nipped at the boy's lips. He growled between breaths, not because of enjoyment but rather from the irritation of it all. These lips did not feel like his real master's at all. Detaching their kiss, he pulled back and picked up the pace in which he penetrated the other. The street rat wrapped his legs tightly around Sebastian's hips and locked his arms over his shoulders. "Nhh! I'm...I'm...." going to cum? Yes, the boy came again for the tenth time that night.

Sebastian had only orgasmed three times, and none of the times were something euphoric. Goddamnit, he needed real release. Even as the boy ejaculated against his navel, Sebastian still didn't stop. He just stared down at the kid and continued to thrust in and out, treating him like some sort of doll. His red eyes glowed in the darkness. If only he could just stare at that face, that eye patch, and pretend it was Ciel. "Ciel..." He breathed the name again as he tried to convince himself harder. There was suddenly a voice in his head telling him to stop...what was this?

His movements halted and he blinked at the one under him. It felt and sounded like Ciel's voice...it couldn't be though...it was probably just his guilty conscience...

"Sebastian?" The boy said, seeing that lack of soul in the demon's eyes. The child raised his hand to feel the eye patch. "Ciel..." The kid said the name himself. "Ciel...Phantomhive? The Earl Ciel Phantomhive?" The kid leaned up some as he suddenly realized. "You love The Earl?"

Sebastian forward his brow at the other, his head hurting. "Shh...don't talk..." He moved himself down and gave the false Ciel an angry kiss. "I'm paying you to not ask questions-," He hissed in a devilish growl, harshly shoving his tongue within the boy's mouth. This sort of brutal kissing lasted for a while, the sounds of saliva exchanging being strong.

With closed eyes, Sebastian's hands found their ground. One latched within the boy's hair to hold his head in place, with the other stroked circles around the eye patch. He was trying too hard to pretend this was Ciel. Sexual peak was almost met with him again. He pulled out of the boy's body and rubbed his swollen manhood against the other's arousal until he came on him.

His body naturally quivered and felt hot. "Mmnn~" He groaned a final noise into the boy's mouth. The boy also made a noise, but for the first time...it was not one of enjoyment. From under Sebastian's lips, he tried to speak.

"Nh...you're...h...hurting me!" He said, tears suddenly streaming down his cheeks. Sebastian was pulling at the younger's hair to the point where his neck jerked back. His hand had moved from the eye patch, and now painted black nails dug into the kid's collarbone.

The child screamed and screamed more, louder and louder. This had to end now before he woke someone up. Some of the horses even started to snort and neigh. There was a final high pitch yell and then the sound of something wet and heavy. Blood mixed with the semen stained hay. The boy's esophagus dropped out from his body, it splattering against the ground like a jell-o cake to the floor. In Sebastian's grip was the boy's head, held by his hair and his back bone pulled almost all the way out of his body. The demon breathed heavily, his red eyes glowing so bright as he looked at the figure now in two pieces...

Ciel watched in horror as Sebastian ripped the boy's head off. For one second, with that eye patch, it was as if…was he watching his very future? Horror gripped his body, its icy hand squeezing his stomach as he saw the blood, so much blood…a lump grew in his throat and he screamed.

He shut his eyes as an intense wave of dizziness filled him and he continued to scream, almost uncontrollably, until he vomited loudly into some nearby hay, body quivering, his fever having returned. Hands gripped his shoulders and he finally spoke into the darkness, his voice extremely shaky, " Se…Se..ba…stian…"

The world spun around him. Sebastian's chest heaved up and down as his breath was so heavy from everything. Adjusting himself back within his pants, he just looked at the broken toy in front of him. How much He looked like Ciel now...more so as to when he was fucking him...why so suddenly? His expression was straight, nothing upon it but emptiness. Ciel was...dead...was this what it was going to be like? What it was going to look like...when that time finally came? Finally he moved some, letting go of the head. It bounced and rolled to the side, and just as he was about to reach for the precious eye patch, he heard those screams.

Sebastian recognized them--Ciel! He had not made it for the eye patch, and he stood up straight with a large eyes. How long had Ciel been screaming for? How long had he been there?! Just as insides had fallen against the hay a few seconds ago, it happened again but only in a different manner as Ciel vomited. His breath was short and it became hard to breath. "Mas...ter...." He barely spoke in response to his own name being said. The tips of his fingers ran cold and he glanced back to the two-piece corpse for another time. It made him feel dizzy and sick suddenly...strangely...never had a kill done that to him...but Ciel would not know, as Sebastian stood there completely frozen in spot.

There was movement after a while though as the demon raised a bloody hand up to stroke his bangs behind his ear, which only got some of the red liquid within his raven locks. "Oh my..." He said, his eyelids falling half way over his orbs as he gained almost a comatose face. "I had not planned on you seeing me like this..." He stepped closer to his master, blood dropping from him with each step he took as his body was covered in it. "You are supposed to be in bed..." His voice was empty, as if there was too much emotion that hit Sebastian at once to the point where he had just shut down.

How alike they were. Ciel also shut down then, amidst the smell of sweat and blood and semen and horses. He shut down, drowned within himself, and let the fever take over his body. Purge the king of his sins. The beasts in the stable seemed to sense the death and pain in the room for even they grew quiet in a strange respect. The boy lay on the floor, trembling, a dead look in his eyes, whispering into the darkness, "Why did you…Sebastian…no...you're not Sebastian...-His dogs name, he didn't deserve it then. - Who are you?"

So many things ran through his head at once. It was like his brain was having a heart attack and then just flat lined. Even Sebastian did not know how close he would get to Ciel at that moment. He stopped though, just a couple of feet away from the child at being asked who he was. Why did he do this? That was an answer he knew all too well...but who was he? That was something even he questioned now. Was he this blood sucking demon lord, Leonard...or was he the loyal and caring butler, Sebastian.

He did not answer...the silence between them and the stable was almost painful. What one of these boys was the real Ciel? What one of them was alive...what one of them was dead? What would he be in the morning? Who would he be in the morning? This plan...this flawless plan, was now ruined and shattered into pieces. "My Master..." He found himself smirk as be brought up a finger to his lips and licked the blood from it.

Closing the gap between them, Sebastian sat on his knees and attempt to pull Ciel against him, almost as if wanting to cradle him. "You should stop shivering...do not be so surprised. You knew what you were getting into when you summoned a demon...didn't....you~?" His smirk widened.

Ciel looked up at Sebastian, face flushed from fever, and whether it was due to physical agitation or because deep down, Ciel was still just a hurt little broken child, he allowed the other to take him in his arms, and not only that, but he brought his slender, trembling arms up around the demons neck and clung to him, clung to his bloodied shirt, tears suddenly streaming down his cheeks. He began to cry against his chest, soft sobs that made his upper body jerk slightly in an unnatural way that said he had not cried in a long time. It was too much for Ciel, seeing his fate played out before him, and all he wanted now was to cling to the fading idea of his loyal butler… - "No...Se...bastian..."-a strong shiver, a quick intake of breath.- "you're not..."-words trailed off-

So many times had he been refused. So many times had he been pushed away...but no, not now. The somnolent state that Sebastian had shifted into was suddenly so easily broken as he felt those arms wrap around him. His eyes opened wide and his head tilted up. Was Ciel actually...crying? With the comprehensive look in Sebastian's eyes now, he glanced down at the small figure within his arms. His hold was so lose than what he had intended.

His lips pressed tightly together as his throat became tight. What did Ciel mean by his shredded words? Was he telling him he was not Sebastian? That he was not that loyal butler he acted to be? Or was it something else? "Master..." he winced and turned his head away as a wave a heavy guilt washed over him...

So many times he had just wanted to hold and touch Ciel any chance he could...so many times he wished that Ciel would latch on to him like this...and now, his own arms had dropped to the side without contact. Did he even have any right to call him master anymore? Slowly...gently, he raised his hands to push at Ciel's shoulders to get him off of him then. He was supposed to be loyal to him...and he was, but he had also just failed in being loyal in his own sense of this thing called 'love.' Of course...that love thing was never in their contract, and it was not supposed to exist for a demon.

If Sebastian was so sure that he had not loved Ciel and just needed to get rid of his lust, then why was this burning feeling for him still there? And...why was he feeling so painful right now for what he had just done?

Ciel's head bobbed slightly as Sebastian pushed him away. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he kept his head bowed, midnight tresses falling over his face, hiding his expression. His shoulders were slumped, and the child was incredibly feverish. Ciel held a loose grip on reality, but it was still there. Sobbing quietly for a few more minutes, until it eventually slowed down. He was too exhausted and broken to think, then, but he knew there was one thing he must do…to fight for that which he sacrificed everything. He leaned up weakly; his face moving closer to the demons, and pressed his cheek against the others bloodied one to whisper against the earlobe. His voice was soft, but was there an edge to it? "You're not a demon…you're Sebastian Michaelis, Phantomhive butler…my legs, my hands, my game piece…you're mine, to obey me…to never leave my side, and never betray me…" the hands slid meekly from his shoulders as he slumped against him, the fever making him dizzy.

No matter how much Sebastian tried to convince himself that sleeping with another boy didn't have anything to do with his loyalty to his master, he could not believe himself. How could it though? It's not like he was involved with Ciel in that sort of way...it was a broken promise to himself though. He had betrayed the forming love and affection that he had for Ciel with lowly lust for someone he didn't even know the name of. Since when did it matter? Since two years ago...

The demon stared blankly at Ciel's face, pain upon his expression as he watched the tears falling down his plush cheeks. Were they real? Would they ever stop? It felt like his body was crumbling for knowing that it was because of him that Ciel was crying. He was supposed to watch out for the boy, and it was like the contract had just gotten crumpled since those sobs were his fault. Sebastian raised a hand, trying to stroke some of the tears away...but it just smeared the unknown boy's blood on the other. This was the only time that Sebastian found the sight of Ciel in blood disgusting.

Eyes drew wide then when Ciel had leaned against him. How clearly he could feel his face pressed against his own, and those hot words being spoken into his ear. Ciel felt like fire...he was way too warm for his own good, and it literally felt like he was burning him by his contact. It was as if his breath cut off with what he heard...he was...not a demon...he was not Leonard....but Sebastian...and yet...there behind him...was a dead human, a child, in two pieces...and there...in front of him...against him...was Ciel...the life to his heart...He was stuck between to lives, and yet Ciel was so much closer to him than that pile of guts and hay.

"Hmph..." Sebastian forced himself to breathe. He tried to smile, but he still could not manage that..."Yes...I am...Sebastian Michaelis, the Phantomhive butler...I am..." _'not a demon...go on, say it.'_ No, that part he couldn't manage...how could he pretend he wasn't when he was covered in blood? He would even tell anyone that he was just a demon and a butler...of course they always thought he was joking...but...if this is what Ciel didn't want him to be...He would not be a demon for Ciel...at the same time, he could not lie. "Please, Master...you should be in bed...you are not well..." He pulled Ciel back away from him just a little so that he could press his bare hand against his messy hair. "You are...boiling up..." Sebastian frowned, brow lifted with deep concern in his voice. "Allow me to take you to bed..."

Tears continued to stream down the young earl's cheeks, body trembling as his chest rose and fell in sobs, unable to gather the strength to stop that which came so rarely to the boy. It was as if a small part of the ice around his heart had melted and was flowing out of him. He lay in the butler's blood-stained arms, eyelids drooping over an orb glazed over from fever, half-awake, half lost in the images his feverish brain forced upon himself. There were images of pain and absolute horror, and the scent of death and gore.

That look upon his master's face...that tone in his voice....that water running down his face. Was this really Ciel Phantomhive he was looking at? Right now Sebastian didn't feel at all like himself, and it felt like Ciel was not himself either. Maybe this wasn't real at all. Maybe this was just a dream...and yet, these feelings and foreign emotions were all too real for this to be a movie created by the mind. "Master...please, please stop crying..." Sebastian spoke more so to himself than to Ciel as he continued to look at him. Why wouldn't the tears stop falling? Had he really shot Ciel so hard with a bullet that instead of an uncontrollable amount of blood flowing out of him, it was tears? The more he thought about it, the more horrible Sebastian felt. Was it really just his 'loyalty' to Ciel though from the contract?

Eyelids drooped as the others hand pressed against his forehead, an action that jolted Ciel slightly out of his approaching unconsciousness. He managed to raise trembling hands, digits curling weakly around the others shirt. There was a small nod of his head to the suggestion of being taken to bed. One word then: "Se…Sebastian…"his voice was so different, from the cold, authoritative tone so often used by Ciel. Instead the call of the others name seemed, almost pleading.

The Earl's body drooped against the devil, hands sliding from his chest to hang limply at his sides as eyelids closed. A stream of murmurs flowed repetitively from his small lips, "not a demon…Sebastian…"

Those fail fingers clasped around his soaked shirt then, and Sebastian sat up straight in tense response. His vermilion eyes jumped from Ciel's digits back to his face, focusing on his lips as he waited to hear him say 'yes' to his question bed...but now, instead he saw those lips form much different words. 'not a demon' he said...again. In instant reaction, Sebastian canted his head up as his brows raised and pressed together. "No!...No...." He closed his eyes tightly. "Please stop saying that!" He completely released the other as he stood up, practically dropping him.

His breathing became ridged and hard. Anger battled with the anguish. "I...am...a....demon!" His hands clenched at his sides. "I do not lie--if I were a feeble human, I could easily lie and tell you what you want to hear." He worked up a sort of deranged smile. "I am a demon...and a butler...and it is my job...to take care of you." He reached his stained hand down to the boy. "And, as your butler...I am to take care of you. So come, lets go. We need to get that fever down...neh?" He tried his best at keeping his voice normal.

The crying ceased as he was practically dropped onto the floor by the other, the last few tears sliding across his blood-stained cheek. Ciel released his grip in that moment, and the color drained from his small face as he made an effort and stood on his trembling legs that longed to rest from his fever. He swayed a bit, took a small step back, his hand rising to cover his nose from the hideous smell that pervaded the area. His uncovered eye was red as it fixed on Sebastian with a shadowy, accusing look, "You're wrong… if you could see your face now; it wears such a human expression! You're more of a human then I am, you didn't sell your soul, I did. I'm the demon!"

Just seeing him with that intensity in his face made it feel like all the blood was being drained from the demon. It was like the life source within his body fell down to his feet within an instant and so did his smile. It only became that much more severe when his master voice discharged. _'You're wrong' _Ciel said, and Sebastian's eyes slowly drew wider with dread with each passing syllable. No...please...don't say it...

_Human..._With a shakey hand, Sebastian raised it to his face subconsciously. Just barely did he touch over his feature as if to discover what his expression really was--sadness? Concern? Things that Sebastian didn't find to be appropriate for him, but they were indeed present...

His lip snarled a bit as he went to pull Ciel up then without the go-ahead to.

The reaching hand for him was slapped away with surprising force, chest rising and falling visibly with each ragged breath his small lungs took, anger filling him and resonating in his voice.

Smack. The noise was loud. It echoed throughout the stable. "Mas....ter...." It wasn't the first time that Ciel had renounced his touch and had hit his hand away...but it never stung so much as it did now. Sluggishly his un-bruised hand idly rubbed at where he had been hurt.

"DON'T you dare touch me!!" Ciel wasn't sure why he felt this, but it was as if Sebastian had betrayed him, broke the contract. He had killed many for his sake, but to see him kill for his own sake… kill an innocent boy, after doing such a disgusting act to him, made his insides turn cold.

A sharp but silent gasp passed out a Sebastian's lips as he was told not to touch him. A hard lump formed in his throat. He would just die if he were never able to touch this boy again... "But master!" He spoke up, wanting to say so much. He wanted to defend himself how he wasn't a human, about how Ciel was not a demon, and how he would do anything to make it up to him! But no...his words never made it past his lips..._'I would...die...'_ Sebastian clenched his hands into tight fists at his sides, turning his head down to the ground. None of these feelings, emotions, or thoughts were pleasant right now.

Ciel though, what does the Black King do when the pawn begin to act on their own? When the Rooks and the Knights no longer await his order? When instead of the white opponents, they turn their murderous eyes on him?

Run.

Fly down the rabbit hole.

The young earl felt his game crumbling around him, and suddenly was seized with a feeling that was all too familiar with him. He turned quickly and moved towards his horse's stable, slightly shakily, almost vomiting again as he passed the hay where the unnamed boy's remains lay. He should have stopped, thought to tell the undertaker to give him a grave, but he was too deep in his own grave at that moment. He pulled open the door to one of the horses stables and threw on a bridle, startling the animal with the speed in which he did it, causing it to neigh and kick, as if feeling the tension and horror that filled its master. He then stepped onto the mini stool that was always inside and leapt up. Without a word to the other, he kicked his horse and galloped out of the stables.

The sound of hay crunching was apparent. Sebastian looked back up at the source of the noise only to see Ciel moving towards his stallion. "What...are you doing!?" Sebastian took a heavy step forward, but it felt like his ankles were chained to the ground. In his head there was a screaming voice that told him he should go to Ciel and hold him back, tackle him if he had to, but yet he was stuck. The horse ran past him then. "Master, wait!" He reached his hand out. Just as fast as his fingers groped the air for the Earl that wasn't there, Sebastian ran out of the stable into the dark night.

Shoes skidded into the dirt as he came to hard stop. The horse and master were not in sight. He had to find him! He had to find Ciel! Only....Slowly he turned to look back at the stable...the body...the blood...the semen...He also had to rid of that mess...but at the same time...Ciel..."Ah-!" He yelled in frustration, and maybe for the first time in all his life, Sebastian dropped down to his hands in knees from weakness. "Why...why!" His voice hissed, eyes glowing red in the dark as his fingers clenched fists full of dirt.

The voice of his master rang through his ears about hesitation. _One moment of hesitation can be fatal_...and, Sebastian had just hesitated between his master and the street rat yet again...


	7. Run Rabbit, Run

Crack. Bang. What was this? The red liquid that coated Sebastian's body started to leak off of him and fall to the earth like red rain drops....rain drops? Sebastian looked up, dark clouds covering the stars and moon, dropping water upon the world as lightening and thunder struck. It was like God was laughing at him. "Damnit..." The demon cursed and stood up with some misbalance. This wasn't good...Ciel had a dangerous fever, and how it was raining and lightening! "Master!" He called out loud as he turned a heel and started to run into the woods, making the choice leave the body of the unknown boy behind for now. Ciel was more important...he was more important than anything!

Ciel kicked the animal onward, wanting to go faster, hooves beating against the dirt as horse and rider galloped further into the dark forest that surrounded Phantomhive Manor. Rain beat against the area as if it wanted to drown its sins, soaked the earl's shirt, his cloak, his hair, onyx bangs sticking to a paled face. An overwhelming dizziness was filling him and his body slumped forward against the soaked neck of the horse, the boy's mouth parting in small pants as the feverish body begged for rest. Still, he summoned the strength and urged his horse forward, wanting to escape the shadows that were chasing him. They surrounded him, and somewhere in the distance the white Queen called, _"Off with his head!" _

Lightning struck a nearby tree, a sharp, banging sound as it caught fire. The startled horse reared, a terrified neigh echoing in the forest. Had Ciel been in a healthy state, he could have controlled it, because he was a good horseman. However, in his feverish condition, fingers loosened on the reigns, and his body was bucked off. He fell roughly onto the ground, his head hitting something hard. Immediately, there was pain.

Something warm next to his ear...blood flowing from his head... The searing pain that followed was nothing...Ciel was used to physical pain…but the pain inside... He lay staring up at the rain as it beat against him, chest rising and falling visibly as he struggled for breath. _No!_ He would not die, not here. The game was not over...his objective; he would not hesitate until he reached it. The shadows were closing in. One word then, a whisper in the night, " Sebastian..."

***

Leather shoes became ruined just as the demon's heart. Water soaked within after a puddle was stepped in. Water splashed up, making his pants heavy as he ran through the woods. So skillful the butler normally was, but mud and tree branches stained against him as Sebastian pushed his way within the area. The only thing that he could see was the sight of his master even though he was really not there. Still, it was like he was chasing after him, far behind...and no matter how fast he ran at his demonic pace, he could never catch up. It really was like Ciel went down the rabbit hole, but he was indeed the white rabbit...and Sebastian was Alice in this world that wasn't his own...this world where he could never catch the white rabbit...

Sebastian could always find Ciel. He always knew where he was and would be thanks to their link...he was so close and yet so far. That horse would not stop its gallops, and the violent storm was making it especially challenging to get to his goal. It was like he was stuck running in place...

"What's this--" His feet skidded to a short stop. Had he just heard his name? He looked around, but the boy was not in sight. Who was he kidding; he knew he wasn't near..."Master..." He whispered back, the rain drenching his attire and making it weigh against his body. "Where...." From breathing that was so heavy and drastic, it suddenly shifted to just the opposite, short and silent...the way someone would just before they died...only it wasn't him who was dying. Sebastian suddenly couldn't feel Ciel's life force, making him lose track of his location_. 'No! It couldn't be! Wait...there is still a little scent of living aura...'_ he had to find him before it was too late! "MASTER!!" Sebastian yelled loudly and started to run to where he sensed him...but that sense was fading so quickly...

"Andrew! Andrew!" A new voice spoke. A wet dirty, teenage boy hurried himself to Ciel on the ground. He got down on his knees and then gasped. "No...you're not...hey...hey kid, it's gonna' be okay. I'll help you!" The boy, Jerry, looked around to see Ciel's pacing horse. Quickly he attempted to get on the horse, Ciel tucked against him so that he could bring him to safety.

Jerry should not have known where to go, but he did...due to the fact that he had snuck within the estate and had spent the last two hours looking for his younger brother...the last he saw of him was him entering these gates, but after the child didn't return, Jerry decided to look for Andrew. Needless to say...he found someone else instead.

_London Bridge is falling down…_

_Falling down..._

Ciel's eyelids fluttered open to the sound of a child's lullaby in the distance, and like in a dream things began to come alive slowly, his blurry vision focused on a white ceiling, his ears began to be filled with odd, distinct sounds. By instinct, he quickly reached out to where his gun was usually hidden in his bed, but...his hand felt for it, only to find rough linen. He shot upwards, looking around frantically. Eye widened. Where was he?...Nurses, beds, people groaning...

"You woke up! You all right, luv? That was a nasty bump on your head..." the nurse's voice was soft, but it didn't sooth Ciel. There was only one voice that could soothe him. He became conscious of a dull, numbing pain at the side of head. A groan escaped his small lips as he brought his fingers to hide his face as he began to remember. He had been riding his horse...escaping...and then, nothing. One word fell from his mouth then, "Sebastian?"

The nurse watched the boy, eyebrow rising in confusion, "Sebastian? Who is he, luv. Your father?" Ciel found enough energy to give a small scoff, and then another small groan. Poor child! She had found the child, bleeding and feverish on the steps of St. Mary's Hospital. She was a new nurse, but of course she had taken him in, he had been recognized immediately by a doctor as the famous Earl Phantomhive, and he had been taken to one of the nicer rooms, and given good care. His fever had broken, though his face was still quite pale. 'Such a beautiful face...it was a pity about his eye.' The nurse wondered what he hid in there... and why?

"My....butler. It's not of importance...but..." the voice was weak and yet sounded much more authoritative then a normal child's. Fingers slid from his young, face as he fixed his eye on the nurse. "Do you know who I am?"

"Yes...everyone does. You're-"

"I need you to contact someone for me."

"Who? Sebastian?"

"No. Her name is Elizabeth Middleford. Daughter of the Marqueess Middelford. Find her, and tell her I am here. If you do so, and keep my identity a secret, you will have enough money to retire. "

The nurse's eyes widened, and she nodded slowly in understanding. Already her young eyes were swimming with the visions of what she could bye with the money as she listened to the boy's further instructions.

***

After having deposited the child on the steps of the hospital, a soaked Jerry returned with an exhausted, drenched horse to Phantomhive Manor. The child rushed to the door, and banged on the front with as much strength as he could muster, "Andrew! Where is Andrew!!!" He screamed shrilly, and knew he would get an answer. These upper-class folks were all the same, he would only tell them where the other boy was, if they returned his brother...

The rain, it wasn't stopping. The sky just continued to pour down its tears, drowning the earth in its bittersweet weapon of both life and death. The blood through Sebastian's veins ran cold. He could feel it traveling from the tips of his fingers to the top of his head. His heavy breath formed puffs of clouds in the cold night air. The moon moved its position in the sky as the hours passed by, but the demon stayed put in the same spot in the woods. His shoes sank into the mud some just a half-inch by the weight the water added to his being. _'Why....am just standing there? Why am I not moving?' _"Why," was all that Sebastian could ask himself as he felt his master's life force fade in and out. Was it really the demon failing at his job in making sure the boy was to remain alive, or was Ciel's soul just drifting away from him?

Back in the mansion, a different boy banged at the door. It took a while for the pounding sound to travel through the walls and wake the occupants up, but eventually the other four servants, Brad, Meilin, Finnian, and Tenaka, went to investigate the noise. They answered the door in their night ware, surprised to say the least to see an unknown face in a panic at this hour in the morning. They were even more curious in wondering why Sebastian was not there. Wouldn't he be at the door taking care of the situation?

"Please...please...you have to help me...I'm looking for my littler brother..." Jerry was practically in tears. He told the story about how he had last seen his baby brother following a tall and dark man to this location and how he had brought a boy with an eye patch to the hospital. This set the alarms off with the servants.

"That s-sounds like Mr. Sebastian!" Meilin said in response to the description that Jerry gave about the guy his brother was with. They all looked at one another. Finnian ran off to search the mansion for Sebastian only to come back and report that he was not there.

Another loud crack of thunder and lightening...

"Come on!" Brad grabbed his jacket. "We have to go look for them both!" He said to Finnian. "Meilin, Tenaka...go to the hospital to see the master!" They ran the opposite direction as the other two went with Andrew to search the grounds.

The storm was only getting worse...a couple more hours had passed, and the weather was making it difficult for Meilin and Tenaka to reach their location. It was also making searching for Andrew and Sebastian a choir. The group reached the stables soon though, and upon opening the doors they were greeted with a most gruesome sight.

Finnian turned and threw up. Brad's face went white as a ghost, and Jerry screamed in denial and rage. "C-Call the police!" Brad yelled to Finnian, who was more than happy to run away from the sight and summon the police. At first the authorities argued about being called at such a time in the weather conditions, but at hearing the description of the crime, they hurried their way to the location...

It was now 5 AM...the time in which Sebastian normally got up every morning. The rain still hit against the windows of St. Mary's Hospital, and it was dark and muggy outside. The new nurse had done just what the Earl had wanted in summoning Elizabeth Middleford. She came with her mother due to the time and the rain. The race was lost. They had beat Meilin and Tenaka to the hospital. The two of them were dealing with a toppled over carriage thanks to some violent wind...

"CIEEELLL!!!" Lizzie threw her arms around the boy, cuddling her soft cheek to his, her high-pitched voice filling the hospital room, "What happened?! We were worried!"

Ciel managed to get out of the girl's grip, muttering about how it was nice to see her, and it was, but the earl had more important things on his mind. He wasn't looking at his fussing cousin, instead he watched Duchess Middleford speak to the nurse. She then came over to Ciel, giving him a disapproving look, "Well you certainly have looked better. Let's get you home. Where is your butler?"

"He is on vacation at the moment. I already informed him I am going to your house, as well as my servants. Is that alright, Aunt?" He could have thought of a more convincing story, but at the moment all he wanted was to continue his escape: To go deeper in the rabbit hole. He would deal with the Manor later, with Sebastian later. The white rabbit never looked twice to see who he ran past. He hadn't forgotten the events of the past few nights, and it was a space that he needed from his butler. Still, it was strange to be lifted into the Middleford Carriage by someone ho wasn't Sebastian, to not see his smile, reassuring him, his voice... the truth was, that deep down beneath the layers of ice, his heart longed for things to be different.

But, things are never as one long them to be. Ciel was silent during the carriage ride home. In the hour before he had been collected, he thought of an excuse, though one that hurt his perfectionist pride slightly in the eyes of Duchess Middelford. Still, sometimes in chess the player had to sacrifice one of the pieces to win the match.

He explained he had been riding, when the storm had spooked his horse, and he had bumped his head, and that a stranger who had found him had taken him to the hospital. Once he had awakened, he had decided to take the opportunity to visit his cousin. "Perhaps it was a sign I don't visit enough." He said, an amused smile flickering through his face.

If only he had known, how close to the truth his excuse was. The Duchess seemed to buy it, and Lizzie squealed in delight the entire carriage ride back, happy to have her fiancée come and visit. Whether the Duchess bought the story or not, Ciel didn't care. All that mattered was that he was on the way to the Manor, away from _him_.

"And you say you have all been sleeping the whole night?" The detective questioned Brad, who was the only one who could from a sentence at this moment. Jerry was in tears, while Finnian was sick to his stomach. There were several cops on the scene. The detective with Brad found it hard to believe that all of them were sleeping as they could be covering up for one another. Surely not one person could manage to pull someone's head from their body with their tailbone intact. This was a most curious and gruesome crime...What made it more interesting, was that this looked like something a machine would do...but nothing around the stable had blood on it other than the hay.

The hay...it only didn't have blood on it. "Cheif, look at this...there seems to be..." the rookie didn't even need to finish his words.

"Just bag everything you find-"

The rookie nodded and took a sample of the hay with the semen on it as well as..."Black hair...?" He picked the shimmering piece up with a tweezers. Brad's eyes widened. None of them had black hair except for...Sebastian..._'No...he couldn't have...'_ Brad thought to himself. Maybe it was horsehair...

"And you say...you can't find the butler...?" The detective asked Brad, who took a moment to respond.

"Mn...yeah..." He said reluctantly.

"Put a search out for Sebastian Michealis...and for God's sakes! Get that kid out of here!" He gestured to the crying Jerry.

The sun barely came up...Another bang of thunder. This one was extra loud...or so it seemed...it was like something physical that pushed against Sebastian. His body jumped as if he had just been thrown into ice-cold water. Slowly he blinked and lifted his heavy feet out of the mud. A shaky hand reached into his pocket as he took out his watch. Clicking it open, the time read 7 AM. "Oh dear...I'm behind schedule..." His voice was empty.

Ciel was father away from him than he had been before. This couldn't continue...he couldn't let his master get further and further away from him...where was he heading to? He had to focus himself and find his master...

Ciel spent the rest of the day being pampered by Lizzie and nagged by the Marquess. His head was throbbing, and he was still weak from the previous night's fever, but he found himself grateful for the physical distractions. He was the master of repression, and he ignored the images of Sebastian every time it flashed before his eyes. Lizzie placed bows on his head, causing for the young master to think of that other child…but he ignored the images of a child's head beng ripped off, too, as he sipped tea with the Marquess. He also ignored the vision of Sebastian's body moving against that child in such a savage way as his hair was combed back and ice placed on his wound. He pushed those images deep, deep inside of him, letting the ice that lived within his frame freeze them.

That smell...Sebastian knew it well--it was human blood. The scent of sweetness and iron lingered in his nose. He couldn't stop smelling it...normally something that was always a delight was now acting as dismay. It even almost made him feel sick. Or wait, was it really that smell of blood, or was it the grievous howling of Ciel's soul. "Where...are you...." Sebastian whispered dry words as he found himself standing in the middle of a dirt road now. It was well mid day, but the sun was still not out. The rain just wouldn't stop..."Where...am I...." He corrected himself, not aware where he had brought himself. His body had been in a trance like state, wandering aimlessly in every which direction as long as he sensed Ciel. 'Where am I...' He asked again, knowing the question was for more than just a perplexed wondering of his physical location.

There also was another negative feeling that was following him as of late. It was the feeling of literally being followed., or no, being hunted. Someone was looking for him, and it wasn't his master...It was human too...one of the other servants from the manor? It didn't feel like their aura...._'I should keep moving.'_ The last thing he needed was to get into another rut that would keep him further from his beloved...

'Beloved'...did he really have any right to think of Ciel as such?

The Middleford Estate. Sebastian's eyes shot wide as his bare hand quickly withdrew from the gates as if they had just shocked him. This was where his master was? This was where his soundness had lead him? Ciel possibly couldn't be here...could he? He practically loathed Elizabeth...Hands clenched at his sides and he locked his jaw tightly. That girl...she probably seemed like a saint compared to him right now...she -is- a saint compared to him.

So, was this it? Had his master made his final decision? He had picked Elizabeth...but yet he, the butler, was never an option to begin with. Oh, how he felt that rage every time that girl's name came up. How he had to fight and act indifferent every time that girl's name came up.

He had made a contract, a promise, to Ciel Phantomhive, to never leave his side...to always stay with him...and he had to be. In the cloudy day his eyes grew bright as a red desert sun. He stared at one window: The window that he knew was a part of the room where his master was...He could easily get there...now...one...two....thr--

"Mister Sebastian Michaelis!" An unknown voice called out. The demon froze for a seconded before slowly turning his back around to see a swarm of cops. "We've finally found you. Get him!"

The stun of the situation paralyzed him. He stood there, still, without resistance, allowing himself to be handcuffed and tossed into the horse carriage. The binds could easily be broken, but where was the will to? His expression was painted with disgust and pain as he could not bring his gaze away from the window until it was forced to be out of sight. Here he was...finally to where his master was...and now he was so far away from him again.

He was silent the whole while, knowing full well why this was happening to him--that child...that dead child...his disappearance...and his blood covered clothes. _'A moment of hesitation can be fatal.'_ Yes...he had hesitated in his choices...caused for both sides to become fatal.

Time passed this way, a few days passed, with Ciel finding some solace in Lizzie's care in the new surroundings, and new servants whose tea wasn't as good as his, but wasn't bad either. Somewhere along the way though, it dawned on him that he would eventually have to go home, and that the Phantomhive affairs were waiting to be dealt with as well as the Funtom ones.

The white rabbit couldn't run forever. He idly wondered if Sebastian, not the demon, was back--if he was looking for him. Their connection had seemed strained, he no longer felt what the other felt, perhaps he had but he ignored it, or had become numb to it. Still, one question came up in the boy's active mind then: Why hadn't he come for him?

The White rabbit...had to find the Queen. Even if it meant being beheaded, he couldn't run forever. Sebastian and Ciel would have to reunite.

The rain never let up, save for a few hours here and there. That was time when people took to being outside with joy...still...London was in danger of being flooded...Water already made the streets look like small rivers.

Back at the Phantomhive Manor, things were quiet. Things were dead. The servants never said a word to one another for days now. Sebastian was being held captive in the station with evidence piled up against him, and their master was gone. They all wondered if Ciel knew what had happened...or more so, what had happened to Ciel to put him in the hospital and cause for him to visit his aunt.

A soft tap against the floor was audible, a small sigh, but the servants gathered around the kitchen table heard these sounds and knew, their master had returned. All three rushed out into the vestibule, Finnian practically mauling Ciel in a bear hug as they all began talking at once, asking questions and rapidly, "Master,

Sebastian! Jail!!

We have too-

where were you?!

What happened?

Sebastian is in jail!. They say he is a Murderer!"

The Earl's eyes widened as he tore himself from his Finnian's arms and stared at all three of them. No questions were answered, instead one was given. He turned to Bard, asked him to explain, his young face getting paler as the servants story progressed. Sebastian was in prison? This was troublesome. He would have to think of an alibi...and already in his acute mind he knew whom he would have to contact.

A mutter was said about being tired, and Ciel went to his office, his wet clothes dripping on the marble floor, a grimace curving his lips. Moving to sit down on his chair, he was silent for a while. Then, his cold voice spoke up, "Sebastian...today's plans? Oh...saving you from jail, I see. And my tea? Oh, you cannot bring it, can you? Tch! I am cold...and you're not here to give me robe, are you? You promised to never leave my side...and all you have done is pushed me away and broken that promise." Another annoyed sound escaping his lips, before they pursed tightly. His sapphire eye moved to the sapphire on his ring and he brushed his fingers over it. The only sound that could be heard for a while was that of the rain tapping on the roof and the footsteps of Meilin as she hovered outside his door, attempting to hear in case the master needed anything.

Finally she opened it, unable to take the curiosity, to find the boy furiously wiping at his cheek with his hand. '_Is he...?'_

Ciel looked up then, his face stoic, though his eye seemed redder then normal. He shot her a quizzical look, and said sharply "Dust."

"Master, uum......" –she brought fingers together in front of her in a timid gesture, "-w-what are you going to do about Sebastian? And umm...d-d-do you n-need anything since he isn't here? I mean from me....?" her face burned red form the effort of speaking one-on-one with Ciel.

He shook his head, and moved his hand to place it on the telephone, his eye fixed on it, "All I need is privacy. I don't like company while I speak to Her Majesty."

Meilin nodded and dashed out of the room, knocking a vase over as she did so and accidentally slamming the door. Ciel would have been irritated by this had he not had more important things in mind. The Phantomhives were one of the few families in England who had a direct access to Her Majesty. He spoke to her quickly, explained the situation. Called in a favor of the many favors that she owed his family. They spoke for a while, and when he hung up, he was certain there was a guard on the way to Sebastian's cell ready to free him. The boy smiled at the irony.

Had Sebastian just been saved by him? Ciel knew the answer to that.

Three days. It had been exactly three days, sixteen hours, forty-one minutes, and twelve seconds since he was placed in here. Everything was disgusting. The human world....really was worse than hell. The demon lay against the floor, arms still behind his back and locked in cuffs. They had started to dig against his flesh, causing red marks to appear around his wrist. Of course the pain was nothing though. What would have drove a normal man to tears and the bridge of death was nothing more than a mere mosquito bite to Sebastian.

A mosquito bite that would not go away....a mosquito bite that itched and itched...and the mosquitoes were those men standing outside his cell with their batons, who came in to beat him every hour.

The painful thing about this was this dirty floor and the way his blood ruined his perfect complexion from the blows. It was painful the way his hair was unclean and unkempt. It was painful the way he had the same pants on for days now. He was so dungy. But, the most painful thing about this was being alone...not being alone, but being without Ciel...every night he yearned for him. He would have given anything to smell his sweet honey scent again or to try and feel his soft cotton flesh...All he felt was the hard stone floor of the jail cell and the blood running down his body. Of course...Sebastian couldn't help but to feel that he deserved it...not for killing some human, but for causing Ciel to cry...

"Master..." He whispered and one of the cops ran in.

"Oi! He said something!"

Another cop just laughed. "He probably just said the 'M-word' again....hahah."

Since Sebastian got there, he had not spoken to the police about anything. It was the reason why he was receiving so many lashings and hits. They were trying to get him to talk. They were trying to get him to confess to the murder: The murder that they had so much evidence against him. They even took the stained shirt off him for proof. The butler would not tell them a thing though...he could not lie, and he would not stain the Phantomhive name. He'd rather die than let everyone know that a member of the Phantomhive family was a murderer...They would hang him soon if he didn't defend himself though...the trial would be had, and he would be announced a killer to the world in the papers...then what about his master? Everyone would know anyway...Maybe....maybe he would have to make a statement...maybe he would have to lie....but would it really be a lie if he said he was no longer a part of the Phantomhive family? That he was now detached from the Earl, and this had nothing to do with him....

But...it had everything to do with him. "Your pardon has been granted..." The chief said as he unlocked the doors. Sebastian just continued to lie there though, like a depressed dog without a master. "Did you hear me? I said you have been pardon! The queen herself granted it-"

Still nothing. Sebastian laid still. A pardon...by the queen...A smile...the first smile he had made in these three days...he knew exactly how that happened. It had only lasted for less than a second though.

The demon was feeling like he'd much rather lay here and rot. The Chief growled and threw the bloody shirt onto the butler on the floor. An officer went in and took off his cuffs, forcing Sebastian to get up.

The sound of the carriage faded into the distance as the horses trotted away. The ex-convict had just been dropped off at the Phantomhive manner. Sebastian stood there, staring at the main entrance for two minutes and nine seconds. Finally he entered within. The other servants turned to look at him, and he only gave them a short glance back before walking past them. Nothing was said...

Finnian, Bard, Tanaka and Meylin were all slightly disappointed that Sebastian had walked away, but they had expected it. They expected that he would go to see his Master first as any loyal servant would. And so they busied themselves, taking out the cake and balloons for his return party. Finally, the only one who could properly run the household had returned!! Finally, Sebastian, who they never believed could be a murdered for a minute, had returned to bring order to the Manor!

Ciel, on the other hand, wasn't in his office; he wasn't in his room. In fact, he wasn't anywhere inside the Manor. The minute they had called to tell him Sebastian was released and on his way, he had grabbed his cane, and walked towards the stables. His heart was pounding, and his insides felt twisted: Twisted with a deep, burning desires to see Sebastian that he couldn't explain. How different, to his desire to escape that had seized him days ago. Now... his contract almost felt like it was on fire, and so did his soul. Still, outwardly he remained stoic, his hand gently stroking his horse's face as he waited. Waited for whom? Sebastian? The demon? Who would appear before him now?

He could sense it, the other was close, and there was no rabbit hole to hide in anymore, "Sebastian... come and face your master."


	8. Quote the Raven, 'Nevermore'

_A/N: Hello all my lovely readers! As you will see, Sebastian sometimes gets called "Leonard" in this chapter. Leonard is a demon in myth that I feel best suits who Sebastian really is. You can look him up if you want ^_^ Also, the idea of Sebastian being Leonard was first suggested in the Kuroshitsuji LJ group for discussion! It was not my thought originally._

Walking down the halls of the mansion didn't feel any different than when Sebastian had just previously took his steps down the narrow corridors of the police station. The same shadow of misery and hopelessness was there, only in a different form than it had taken before. These halls that he had walked so many times before felt like something uncharted in No Man's Land.

The candied smell of the cake; the bitter rubber scent of the balloons, it was all so strong in the air...but still a certain smell was missing--Ciel's. Even as Sebastian stepped pasted his room, his office, his bathroom--there was a lack of his presence. To see the boy right now was that what he wanted? Sebastian didn't even stop or slow his footing as he walked away from those doors...he just headed straight for his own quarters.

The air inside the room was stale. He had not been in this place for days. In a drone-like state, he just walked passed his bed and into the adjoined bathroom he had. He stripped of his clothing, belt, and shoes, tossing them all in the small garbage without second thought. Steam filled the small washroom as he turned on the water to the shower. He stood within it, the warm water running down his body...it feeling all so much like the rain.

The blood within his hair made it knotted and difficult to wash. The water was getting heavier and heavier. His hand pushed against the wall as his body leaned. "Ah-!" The demon let out a short yell where he quickly covered his other hand over his mouth. His eyes closed tightly and they burned. They burned from water...but not the water that fell from the showerhead.

'_What the hell is this...No, demons never cried! It was not possible!'_ He just kept his eyes closed, the fire getting stronger and stronger within his orbs. Rapidly his hand went from the wall and to the knob, turning off all the warmth. The cold stuck his body like a winter icicle stabbing through his chest. There...

Nothing leaked from his face but the left over shower.

Sebastian looked at himself in the mirror, dressed in his normal butler attire. It had been a while since he had seen himself like this. _'Who am I...'_ He wondered, his face even looking blurred as he stared at his reflection. _'Do I even have a right to wear this?'_ Slowly his eyes drifted over to the picture of Ciel he had hanging up in his room...that picture that the master didn't know about...He went over it and straightened it out a bit..."Master..." He said in a horse voice.

"..."

Those stable doors. He had looked at them before, thinking that this place was going to be his sanctuary, but it had been his pandemonium instead. There...inside, was his master....his Ciel...he knew it. It was the same feeling he had when he had looked into Elizabeth's place....Elizabeth.

Those words that Ciel spoke _'Sebastian... come and face your master.'_...he heard them, over and over.

Each step he took was loud on the soggy ground. It was dark within the stable as he got over the hill and went inside...but it was not as dark as that night...and there he saw...his master, just as beautiful and majestic as the horse he so pet...

One stroke of the horses face, and the barn was filled with light as the door opened. Another stroke, Ciel heard Sebastian's footsteps, another stroke, they were plunged in darkness again. His whole body stiffened, but he didn't turn around. Only his fingers slowly dropped form the horse's face, to rest at his side. His heart continued to pound in his chest, beating faster with the bittersweet anticipation and his eye closed a minute.

Yes, he could feel their connection again, and the distinct smell of Sebastian wafted in through the air of the stables. It made him shiver with longing to see him. Still, he didn't want to look at Sebastian yet, perhaps because he didn't know which Sebastian he would see?

He was a creature with so many faces: One, the loyal and skilled butler, capable of handling any task. Two, the terrifying demon capable of murder and perversion. Three, the caring human who gently tuck him in at night and made him feel safe. Which one would he face? Let the game of chance begin.

_....Place a single round in the revolver..._

Ciel placed his gazed at the floor, his lips parting to speak in his usual cool voice as he crouched down to trace his slender finger over some hay, "There is no trace of him anymore...or of the blood."

_Spin the cylinder..._

"I suppose you have an explanation for what you did... "He spoke in his calm tone, hiding the wild beating of his heart. Fingers curled his around some hay, lifting it up for his horse to eat. The animal eagerly craned his neck to nip and tug at the food.

"....But first..." A small lifting of his lips.

_Shoot._

"...Welcome back, Sebastian." He turned then, turned quickly, without hesitation, fixing his cold blue eye on his butler, his demon, his human.

_The murky light from the outside world may have only filled the barn for a few short seconds before Sebastian closed the stable door again, but that did not deteriorate the bright glow shining from his heart. The beam of dawn filled the stable, everything sparkling and and shimmering in cotton candy pink and summer time bubbles. "Master!" Sebastian beamed as Ciel turned around to give him a smile, a lovely true smile. They held their arms out to one another, the two of them frolicking to embrace in a warm hug as they could not stand being without one another a second longer._

_"Sebastian...I have missed you. Everything's okay now. I love you." The Earl said with stary eyes. _

_"Oh master, I never thought I would hear you say those words. I love you too!" Sebastian gently rested the boy's head in his hand and coated his lips with his own in a passionate kiss._

"_There is no trace of him anymore...or of the blood."_ Ciel pushed him away suddenly and looked at him. Sebastian blinked as he tried to read the expression in his eye, but nothing was there...in fact...nothing was there at all...

The butler stood there, not two feet away from the door. His arms empty, cold, and alone--just like his heart, past, present, and future...

The sound of the wind weeping outside destroyed the fantasy in Sebastian's head. The raw and damp feeling of the stable was apparent again.

The reality was that the two of them were standing at one another, both with a loaded gun in their hands...only Ciel was so skilled at this game, that he wouldn't even need to face him to make a proper shot. So, which one would shoot first? The lower lids of his eyes winced a bit as he heard the sound of weapon being ready to fire. Of course...that was really just his master's voice...Ciel had already won this game...he had said the first word, and he had cleaned up his mess...a human...cleaning up after a demon...taking care of a demon when it was supposed to be the other way around!

Then...it happened...he had been shot.

'_...Welcome back, Sebastian.' _ Ciel said as he turned around, not reluctant to aim the gun at him and kill him in cold blood murder. Welcome back....yes, where would he be if it had not been for the Queen's guard dog that pulled his pen's lock open and then cleaned up the shit within that cage...

His eyes had gone wide as the sting of the bullet penetrated him...and he stared at the person, the child, who was looking at him and waiting for him to die in front of him.

That face...was this the same master who was crying against him the last time he saw him?

'Wait a moment...why haven't I fallen down to the ground yet? Why am I not laying in a puddle of my own blood at my master's feet? That bullet...it was a blank!'

Sebastian stood there, frozen, his body shaking just barely for a second until he realized someone had replaced Ciel's bullets...now it was his turn. With a breath, Sebastian worked up one of his smiles...how it felt so strange to being grinning again. "Well~ That is good that brat is gone, neh? And I do thank you for the welcome...there is even a welcome back party...for..." His tone was getting more and more sarcastic as he went along, "...me~? Or....is it for you? Because, I should be the one welcoming you back as well...So, how long have you been home for? How was Elizabeth's?" He narrowed his smile and eyes at the boy, purposely not addressing someone, her, as 'Ms.' for the first time with Ciel.

Despite being in a barn, a gun pointed to the demon that he gave his right eye and soul too, Ciel looked the part of a little gentleman: Back straight, chin high, jaw set, silk stockings and a silk cravat, coat and vest made from the finest manufacturers in London. Lacking Sebastian, Tanaka had had to dress him. Thankfully, the oldest servant of the Manor had some experience dressing him before the fire, so the young earl looked as he always did as he fixed his attention on Sebastian, on the words that came out of his perfect lips. A wave of anger passed through his blue blood. So, it was the demon in front of him, now. The demon who thought nothing of throwing away the life of an innocent child

Uncovered eye narrowed slightly as he continued to listen to Sebastian, and a million questions formed in his acute mind. How did the butler know he had been at Lizzie's? Well, it wasn't really surprising, since Sebastian knew everything. He was sure he knew the thoughts going on through his head, even now. Then, Sebastian's words about his cousin hit him. Questions and musings flew out of his mind; gentlemanly appearance flew out the window as he cursed. Fingers clutched the invisible weapon he held until the knuckles were white. Lips parted to release a quick, harsh whisper, "Miss!"

There. There it was. There was that retraction. The curve the body made and vomit of blood that happened so naturally when one was shot. Sebastian smiled, proud to show off his fangs, and they shimmered more than normal. His bullet had hit Ciel. He could see it in his face and body.

"Hmm~" The demon canted his head up a bit as he was corrected. _'Yes, come to me.' _

It took seconds for Ciel to close the gap between master and servant, as his ocean eye met the other's face vehemently, sparkling blue with anger. The non-existent gun was pointed to the others chest, unsteadily, and when he spoke, his voice was cold and low, and held the faintest tremble "That's Miss Elizabeth. She is my fiancée, show her proper respect!"

The boy was up in his face, so close to him. Sebastian just continued to smile at him. Outside of this barn, it was chaos…inside of it was hell. Yes, just as Sebastian had thought before…this stable was supposed to be his sanctuary, but it turned out to be the opposite—it was hell. Well, what was hell? It was his domain. Hell was his world, and it was where he had complete control.

A small cruel chuckle even passed through his lips, as he was correct a second time. Ciel surely was so close to him. He could smell him; so sweetly and so repulsive at the same time. How he could practically taste his breath. "Respect to Elizabeth, you say?" His laugh became louder then as he reached his arms out just a bit and placed his hands on the boy's small waist without invitation. He held him there. "What do you know about respect? What do you know about anything?" The red sea in his eyes became smaller and smaller.

The younger stood like a small statue, his eye narrowed to the demon, glued there, keeping all emotion from his face. Inwardly, Ciel Phantomhive was experiencing a wave of emotions. He was furious, shocked, repulsed, confused, and suddenly tired. Where was Sebastian? Where was the butler that could make 100 curries in two hours? Who would never disrespect Lizzie? Who was gentle with him, and obedient? He wanted him back, desperately. He was cold. He was hungry. He wanted to be lifted into those strong arms; to burry his face in the coat that smelled faintly of cologne and then be carried to the safety of his bed. He wanted warm tea down his now dry throat.

He wanted his partner back, his pawn, his legs, his chess piece, his eyes, his... He wanted to continue to be Ciel Phantomhive, watchdog to the Queen, owner of Funtom Company. He wished that he could turn back time and erase everything that happened at the coffee shop and after. And yet, standing there, in that cold, dark barn, Ciel knew that there were no angels to hear his wish. No cherubs to rant him his desire. Oh, how very contrary to that it all was.

All these thoughts were racing in his mind, but they he masked them in the shadows that perpetually surrounded him.

Outwardly, the little prince didn't even flinch as Sebastian's hands found his waist.

"It was me who taught you. It was me who taught you everything." The demon paused just so that he could show off his fangs even more. "You'd be nothing without me." Then, with those words, he roughly pushed Ciel away from him with enough strength to knock him on the ground…getting dirt all over his lovely outfit that he didn't dress him.

"Maybe it wouldn't have to come to this if you showed me a little more appreciation~" Slowly he ran his fingers through his hair, adjusting his bangs back. As his hand covered the inches of his bangs, they vanished as if more than half of them had some how been cut off just by his own stroke. Those raven bangs now hung almost wildly just above his ear.

"How much about business did mommy and daddy teach you when they were still alive? You should know all about contracts, so you should know when one becomes null and void…Well, my dear Ciel Phantomhive—" His eyes flashed their bright red, the human orb within them gone as the cornea were now thin vertical slits.

"This contract…is void now." He laughed, the noise loud throughout the whole stable as a circulation of what appeared to be thick black smoke consumed Sebastian's figure. It was like the magic cloth that was flashed in front of the magician's woman and then once removed where a bird would appear instead.

He didn't change his expression as the other began to transform. His eye never left the demons, even after he revealed himself to be something that looked like it had escaped from a circus in Piccadilly. Something...that looked like one of them, those who had made him his pet... And then, the creature's bullet shattered the stone of his reserve and the mask fell to the ground. _'The contract... is now void...'_

It took only seconds, but the demon now stood there in his real form that could be compared to the structure of human the most out of all of them. Thigh-high boots covered his legs, and vinyl shorts to match the them were upon the creature. His navel was bare, but a half vest decorated in belts was worn on his chest. Gloves covered all the way up to below his shoulders, but they had the fingers cut out for the sake of his long black nails that looked so much like claws. His hair was short and black, and vigorous horns sat from his head. This was one of Leonard's many true forms…

Ciel's eyes widened as much as it could then, small lips parted and he gasped almost inaudibly. The colour that had risen to his cheeks from anger at the other's violation of Elizabeth's name quickly drained, leaving him pale. There was a shudder then, a deep shudder that wracked his body and made his stomach sink deep. "No!! Why? I have not reached my objective yet!"

This transformation in Sebastian's body left Ciel's nobility untouched. Did it not matter? Did showing his real face to the brat leave him unaffected? No….it wasn't this change in his form that was going to get to the boy, but rather it was the transformation in his soul.

Once Sebastian mentioned the contract, he could clearly see all of Ciel's vitals break down in front of him. So, that really was what was important here…nothing else was. Suddenly his rudeness to Elizabeth or what his own name was, if it was Sebastian or Leonard, didn't matter at all. This was the ultimate test.

The demon, pure as he was right now in physical form, continued to stand there with his convicting gaze at the human. The smile and mirth was lost from his own face as he stared at the younger with complete abomination. "So…that's really all you do care about…" He said in such a whisper that maybe he hadn't really said it out loud at all.

'_What strange feeling is this?' _Sebastians insides felt like they were dissolving slowly. Misery. Dejection. Anguish. Dismal. Heartache…

"Heh-" Leonard let out a hard laugh. This situation was funny, really. Here he was, the demon, feeling all these human emotions…and here Ciel was, the human, with nothing but selfishness. Unless…maybe he was wrong…maybe the child was just using the contract as his breaking point…maybe the contract was really just the play within the play.

No…that was wishful thinking…

So, that time…when he had killed that boy…and Ciel had told him that he was human…and that he was Sebastian…it was only because he wanted him to remain how things had been for the sake of that Goddamn contract…for the sake of his goals.

All this thinking, it had made time slow down. Leonard had been silent, stuck in a black hole, after he had been questioned. Probably a good four minutes had passed of nothingness…

Nothingness…that's all this was. That's all this ever was…

Raising his hand to his face, he slowly stroked it down as if to wake himself up. Once this action was performed, the rotten smile was back over his lips that was so fitting of any fallen angel. "Hah…_why?_ What reason do you want…a contract becomes null and void when a promisee tries to avoid the contract…when a mistake occurs…when…certain events cannot be prevented by the promissory, so the contract becomes impossible…and…when one party lacks the….capacity…" By the time he was finished with his statement, the grin was gone. It was like each syllable had drawn closer to death in his voice.

Leonard stared at the other, eyelids dropped half way over his orbs and his lips were straight. It wouldn't be long before Ciel would feel hot burning liquid running down his face from his eye where the contract used to be—blood. It wasn't just one of the nulls he mentioned, but rather all of them. This was a mess…

'_I was being humiliated as a pet…my family was killed, my house burnt…I was such a powerless kid…then a chance as thin as a spiders web…was sent to me offering me the choice to crawl out…I decided not to give up…and I reached for it._

But now, that thread is coiling around me, suffocating me… trapping me in it like a coffin, to wait for the spider…' Ciel's knees began to wobble, his eyelids felt heavy, they fluttered and hooded as everything began to spin around him. A hand reached out to try and steady himself against something only to find the pitiless wall was too far away. His thin body swayed slightly. His chest rose and fell visibly as he struggled to breathe, and he bowed his head a bit, bangs curtaining his face, hiding it from the demon.

The earl tried to get up, but he couldn't even manage to move his legs. Bowing his head more, he flushed in humiliation. For the first time in two years, for the first time since the butler had stepped onto the marble floor of Phantomhive Manor, Ciel felt fragile and weak. _'Once again…I am a powerless kid.'_

And despite all the physical pain, there was an even deeper pain; one that felt like an icicle pierced his heart. One he didn't really understand. What seemed like hours passed, and there was silence between the child and the demon. Each in their own hell. The quiet was only broken when two words, cold and deep, fell from his lips then, "You're right."

The beast stood there in static, in a frozen still stance without a channel while the other could not keep himself from moving—from falling. Leonard watched Ciel in his feeble manner on the ground. Checkmate. The king had fallen. The best way to play chess, no…the best way to have victory, was when the opponent would not see it coming.

For this whole game, the little master Ciel thought that he was winning this game, but he was missing one vital move that would give Sebastian, Leonard, the winning move. The question was though…did he really want to win, or was it something that just had to be done? It was for sanity, or so the ex-butler thought. It was the angel's way of thinking that made them fall to begin with though…

What a joke that was! Here he wasn't the fallen one…it was Ciel. It was Ciel who was down on the ground, and the demon who stood up proud and straight.

Proud and straight…and yet…it was like each word that Ciel spoke was a forceful hand trying to smack him down on his level.

His eye was burning now, a searing pain that clenched the sides of his face from anguish. A trembling hand came up to rip off his eye patch, free the contract he was losing. Then, even though he felt he would lose consciousness any minute, he began to crawl closer to the demon. When he spoke, his voice was shaky from the pain he was enduring, "I am nothing without you… you are my sword, you are my strength. You saved me from something liken to Hell. You swore you would never leave me. I don't care about the things you said, I am not ready to forfeit. I will not give up. I need you."

He summoned the little energy he had left, to look up at the demon's face with a deep intensity, "Return to me, Sebastian!"

"Shut up-" Leonard said rigorously practically over the child's voice…still, that didn't help in him not hearing each sound his voice made. "Everything I said…I meant under the contract. Now that I am not bind by it, everything is void." He shifted himself to the side a bit, the heels of his boots digging into the soft ground from the moist weather. A forced grin was made as the demon tried to convince himself that this was what he wanted and that he was in charge now. "It does not matter what you want now. It's too bad…really." A fake laugh sounded to match that fake smile. "You do need me, yes, you only need me for your goal…that is it." There was no hiding the bitterness and hurt…Leonard wanted Ciel to need him for more than just that…because…he needed him. It made him feel sick.

Ciel was in so much pain at this point, that his body was slumped over and his breathing was loud and rigid. Every word from the creature was like a sword being stabbed into him. His palace, that he had worked so hard to create, was turning into sand. And Sebastian....the human, the butler, could not save him because he had been buried somewhere underneath it all. Still, summoning a strength from somewhere inside of him, he kept his eye on the demon, never taking it from his face, even as his vision blurred. When he spoke, his words were faint , "You...just have aesthetics...what does it matter... what I need you for...? In the end...you will have my soul, why not...delay this process, until my goal is fulfilled? "

The other stood there in spot. The sound of the rain clanging on the window was loud. He turned himself back the way he previous stood, facing Ciel. His face was that of the butler's again with the long perfect bangs. "Is this who you want? Sebastian Michaelis?" The dark laugh echoed once more. "Well…here I am…" raising his hand just a bit in the air, he used his power to lift the boy from off the ground…to bring him to him like a floating ghost. "Only…"

All this time, Ciel had him in his grasp…but now, it was the demon who had him. Actually, "Sebastian" had Ciel all the while…but now the curtain was drawn to reveal the real picture.

Even though Leonard was not physically touching the boy, he could still feel him. Oh, how he could feel him so completely. It was like he was holding a pile of pure soil dirt, and it was slowly crumbling within his hands. He was not fit to take care of this garden and to make the flowers grow. Instead, it just all fell apart. That was demon's job, after all: To ruin things. Now, this boy in front of him, surely was ruined.

"So childish…" Leonard grinned the words, even though he disagreed with them at heart about Ciel. It was purposely said to strike him. "How many times do I have to say it? The contract is void. That means, that the terms of it are over…it's nothing now. The deal was, I got to have your soul if your goals were complete…so, you really should be thanking me…you will get to live on in eternity without me. Your soul will have a place of rest instead of being non existent."

The smile was lost as Leonard made a sharp turn of his head along with a cold breath. Hearing himself say those words made him cringe. He wanted Ciel…he wanted to be with him…forever. Since when had he fallen so low?

So weak…Ciel was nothing more than a broken human child, and yet…it was like he fell for him the moment he laid his bloody eyes upon him.

He forced himself to look back at him though. "Only…you do not call the shots now…I no longer have to listen to you." He parted his lips, a long tongue extending from his mouth. It traveled the distance between them, where it lapped the blood up from the boy's eye socket. A last taste of him.

The boy was so weak now, he could barely keep his eyes open. He could feel his life slipping from him, and he protested, he fought against it internally, screaming in refusal at the demon's cold words that echoed somewhere in his head. But his body betrayed him as it became harder and harder to breath, as each muscle grew heavy, and as the pain increased in his eye to the point where he was beginning to see black spots. His eyes closed to slits just to then catch an unfocused glimpse of Sebastian's face. He was barely aware of his body being lifted closer and he actually attempted to outstretch his hands to him.

And somewhere in his mind a voice spoke: _Sebastian..._

_Don't leave me..._

_Come back to me..._

_Save me..._

_I love you._

"Enjoy the rest of your life, while it lasts." Leonard laughed, but the noise did not last long. Had he just heard something else? Was his mind still connected with Ciel's…this feeling…no, it couldn't be true…Ciel did not love him…right?

Black feathers decorated the barn. Raven wings caped Leonard's back. "Never more." The words swam within the walls as the figure was no longer there, but rather a raven instead. It would be then that the other would fall to the ground, and Leonard, Sebastian, was gone.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_


	9. Defenseless

_Why?_

_Why did you leave me, alone? _

_I would rather you had killed me...taken my soul and done what you wanted with it...then left me a defenseless kid, with no family, once again._

Months had past since that fateful day. That day when Finnian and Meylin had found their master slumped in a pool of blood on the floor of the stables with the faithful butler nowhere in site. No questions were asked then; the boy had been carried to the Manor, cleaned up by Tanaka, who became a sort of replacement for him, taking up his duties.

The cake that had been made for his homecoming remained uneaten, and the decorations had long been taken down.

It soon became clear, when that handsome face no longer appeared to solve all the Manor's problems, when the smell of perfectly made tea no longer wafted through the corridors, when the gardens began to look disarrayed, and plates went missing, when that feeling of safety that each inhabitant had felt without really knowing it had disappeared...

That the butler was gone.

One morning, Finnian knocked on the door of his master's office, "Young Master...Bard wants to know what you'd have for dinner tonight?"

But, as usual, there was no answer.

The boy's eyes shot to Meilin's, and they exchanged a look as they slowly, and sadly, walked back to tell Bard to make whatever he could.

Inside the office, the rain beat against the roof like a thousand tiny fists. Small hands curled around the armrests of his broken throne, and the fallen king slowly stood up to move to the mirror, gazing his reflection. What a pale, drawn reflection it was! His hand moved to his eye patch, lifted it only to see a closed eyelid, which he couldn't bare to open, because of what was missing. The connection, the contract, was no longer there. How did it make him feel? His other eye was as dark as the cloud-covered sky outside, and as fogged. He told nothing to himself, nothing of the anger, of the pain, impotence, the sadness that he locked inside his icicle heart: His cold heart, which had loved Sebastian Michaelis all the while.

He closed his eye, a shudder of emotion wracking his frame. What a fool he was! He cursed under his breath, swiftly turned, crossed over to his desk and sent his hand flying across the dollhouse replica of his manor, sending it crashing to the ground, pieces of the tiny furniture that had adorned it, scattering across the floor. He panted in his rage, could hear the demon's words then, swimming in his head, taunting him.

"So childish…you do not call the shots now… Enjoy the rest of your life, while it lasts."

Fists clenched white at his sides, and he stared at the damaged dollhouse for a long time. Then, the boy knelt down, picked a piece up in his hand and placed it on the desk. He turned on his heel, emerged from the office, and gathered the servants in the dining room.

His back was straight and he gripped his cane steadily, his eye flashed blue as it regarded them, "... Bard, Finnian, Tanaka, Meylin, We are all going to London, to find a new butler to get this household in order, and hire many, many guards. Now that Sebastian is gone, I have to find another way of protecting myself" A small smile curved his lips, "I am the master of this household, after all."

'I won't let you win... I won't be a defenseless, ruined kid... because humans have that strength... and I am going to use it to rebuild my kingdom.'

***

'My God, what have I done…' God…? There was no God. Actually, there was…but he was literally dead. Everyone knew that but the foolish humans who still believed in his presence. The angels knew it, the shinigami knew, the demons knew it, and Leonard knew it…

Everyday it was the same thing: This demon who should have been back in his realm of Hell, in his own kingdom, still remained within this disgusting world. Of course…during this time, he was the only one that was feeling disgusting compared to the people of the human world.

Yes, everything was the same—the same thoughts circulated through his head over and over, every day. 4:00 PM: Teatime. No, it was that time of the day where Leonard thought about Ciel, same with 5 PM, and 6 PM, and all day, night, and morning long. It was constant.

It felt like every little movement and choice that he had made in the past was the most perfect thing, but this…leaving that boy like this…was the worst thing he could have ever done in all his long years.

_Sebastian, I love you._

The voice of Ciel saying that played over and over. It was like he clearly heard him say it, but yet those lips never formed the words in reality.

3 AM—the hour of the beast. Leonard's feet perched on the high cross of Big Ben's clock tower. He could see all of London from her, but yet there was a blind spot…a part he couldn't see—Ciel.

His hand pressed against his face, feeling the curves of it. He could not lose the style of Sebastian that Ciel had given him. No matter how hard he tried, he could not get his hair to change back. Yet, he could easily form into his other creatures—the goat, the bird…even all the time he spent as the raven, it did not help in the distraction of this pain. He would often visit his ex-master from a distance, trying to disguise his raven figure within a pack of other birds…as long as he could see him, if for a second…oh, how he knew he shouldn't be doing such a thing if he wanted to get over him…and yet he couldn't…he didn't want to let him go.

Leonard often wondered if Ciel had caught a glimpse of the black bird, or maybe it was just his imagination.

It all hurt so bad. He had lived for over one hundred years, and nothing ever felt like this before. How could he have been so foolish? He had spent a few weeks away from his precious master in a jail cell, and what did he do the moment he got back to him? Left him all over again. Wasn't he smarter than a human? Shouldn't he have learned that it was painful to be without that child? Of course…but yet he didn't want to face the truth.

The truth: Something that demons held so dear…but this was a truth he didn't want.

The months felt like years…when really, a human's life was nothing but a day's time to him. What was making this day so long then? Leonard knew so well…

Standing up straight upon that cross, he jumped down the tower. Half way down he shifted into the raven. With a graceful curve flight was taken. Some feathers dropped below to the flooded streets of England.

This rain…it was killing the country's economy and lives themselves. It wouldn't be far to say he would soon become one of the victims themselves.

There was that drowning oak tree he had planted so perfectly in front of the mansion for the best sight of the property in case one day Ciel and Elizabeth would want to rest under it…actually, who was he kidding. All Leonard was thinking at that time was about him holding Ciel under the cool shade of the tree…

The raven landed on a dying branch, his black eyes trying to peer into the mansion. The invisible needles in his blood prickling him was just driving him insane. Why did he need other birds to act as his shield? He just had to see that child right now…he was strong, right? What a joke, if he was such a powerful demon, then why wasn't he in there right now, standing at that door as Sebastian Michaelis…How much longer could he be dominated by this feebleness?

The butler in image, with that flawless suit and his long hair, stood at the main doors of the mansion outside. He thought about just going inside, but instead a bare hand knocked on the door. Damn…the rain was ruining his attire…

The large doors of Phantomhive Manor opened very slightly to reveal a peeking green eye. Then, a loud gasp was heard and they were flung back, to reveal the form of Finnian, standing there, mouth open in utter shock. "Se....Se...." his knees trembled, eyes became watery, his expression went soft, almost childish and he flung himself at the butler, letting out a choked cry, "SEBASTIAN!!?!?" He Stared up at the man's face, for as far as Finnian knew, Sebastian was a man, extraordinary, who all the servants had missed dearly.

Out came millions of questions, rapid, excited questions, "Where were you? What are you doing back? Young Master told us you left forever! Oh wait until I tell Meilin and then but...oh..." a hand raised to his mouth as the boy remembered, and his face fell, a small pout forming, "They aren't here...they're in London, all of them. They're looking for a new....Um....Except for me, I have to meet them later."

That scent…he recognized it. It wasn't the one he wanted to be answering the door. Sure enough, there he was greeting by Finnian. He remembered how he could smile so easily here, but now it just wasn't coming to him. He looked at the gardener with a hallow, dry river within his eyes.

"Tch…" Sebastian snorted, thinking about how if he had still been here, then he wouldn't be subjected to waiting in the rain so long. Still, he tried to smile though, thinking that this all wouldn't matter once he would see his master. Well…at that very thought his stomach sank. Yes, this all would matter.

All the questions that were fired at him like bullets left him numb. "Finnian…" He said, his voice broken. Had he really not spoken all these months? That's what happened when one was trapped in their head…

The bottom lids of his eyes cringed upwards, as there was a hint of being shattered in the demon's face at the words he heard. Even though the servant had not finished his statement, Sebastian knew where it was leading.

It would be a lie to say that the thought of the Earl finding a new servant hadn't crossed his mind, but it was true. He tried to convince himself that no one would ever be as good as him, not even another demon. Would Ciel be willing to sell his soul again? Sebastian knew his old master, and he wouldn't put it past him. The idea of it made him jealous.

Perhaps he had done the right thing for once in many months and gotten here before it was too late. "Finnian…may I…come in…I mean…" he let out a sigh as he glanced to the side, wincing at the fact of how much weakness he must be showing. "Or…at least, may I see my--the master…even if I cannot come in…?"

The young blond boy blinked several times, noticing how drawn Sebastian looked, and wrapped his arms around one of the butler`s, pulling him inside eagerly, "Of course!! Sebastian, this is your home. "

Uhg, this was the second time that Finnian had invited himself to touch him. It made his eyebrow twitch, but some how he did not have the power to yelled at the dumb blond. Still, that didn't mean he enjoyed it. Even as his hand was taken, Sebastian was quick to pull it away from him. He only wanted one person touching him. That all he ever wanted, and all he will ever want.

The boy smiled excitedly and then suddenly released the arms almost as quickly as he had grasped it, and his eyes grew wide, "You're not going to leave again are you...?"

"We must leave now, if we are to make it before nightfall..." Ciel Phantomhive's usual cold voice echoed against the vestibule as he descended the grand staircase, Tanaka close behind him, his ocean eye falling on Finnian and then on the figure next to him.

He froze.

The smile plastered on Finnian's youthful face returned, "Oh, there they are! Master! Tanaka! Look! Sebastian's back!! He's returned."

That unforgettable voice dropped down from the heavens then…or, it should be more appropriate to say that it came up from Hell. Sebastian quickly stepped forward, practically plowing Finnian down in the process with his rough demeanor. "Mas—" He started to say as he looked up the stairs with his wide scarlet eyes. Anything else Finnian said was blocked out. The corner of his lip twitched. He had thought about this moment for so long as well as what he would do…but now that it was actually happening, that he was seeing Ciel Phantomhive again in so long…he was stuck in place just as the other was…

What was this gravity that was holding them down? Ciel couldn't move from his spot, his legs felt as if they weighed a thousand pounds, and all he could do was stare, stare with his eye as wide as possible, mouth parted in shock. His cane actually slipped from his fingers, but he didn't hear the clatter of it as it fell on the floor, and then rolled down the rest of the stairs, finally stopping near the butler's feet. He didn't hear anything, or see anything. Tanaka, Finnian, the very building, melted away, and it was just Sebastian. .

He let his eye travel down to those elegant shoes, up the long, dark pant legs of the pristine uniform, across the broad chest, lingering on those white gloves, then moving up his arms, to the cravat tied at his throat, then up to that face...the familiar face that had saved him, and then left him to die. Slowly, he let his expressionless eye meet with those crimson ones.

All the old emotions came rushing back mixed with new emotions and his small body trembled.

Frightened that any of the feelings tormenting him would show, Ciel closed his eye for a moment, took a breath trying to focus his mind and steady his heart. Since when had it started pounding? He finally found his feet, and forced them to move down the stairs again, reaching the bottom, he looked at Tanaka, "Fetch my hat, and go prepare the horses."

"But Master! Seb-" Finnian said quickly

"Finnian," Ciel interjected, "you were tending to the gardens, were you not? Please resume your work." One, well-chosen look from his master was enough to send Finnian sulkily back outside. Tanaka also headed the boy's orders and after giving a smile to Sebastian and handing the young earl his hat, went off to prepare the carriage. Ciel slipped the elegant top hat on his head, and then turned, looked up at him, cursing himself and his weakness for having an urge to touch him. "How dare you come back. I am not your Master anymore....Is this..," his eye narrowed, "to mock me? Why are you here?"

The blood ran through his cold like ice…cold like how a demon's life force should be…only, this time it was not due to anything hellish or what would be considered evil by more, it was due to that recluse sole standing in front of him…above him…above him as he always was. Ciel was still above him. He had control of him. He had control of his empty heart. Those small fingers were wrapped around it, dull nails scratching into it and breaking the cartilage until it gained holes to have something actually fill his empty hart up…

So there they were, the two of them trapped within staring at one another…just like that stormy night…and just like that stormy night, it was Ciel who had acted first…The gravity was selfish though, and it even was too much for that cane the Earl always held so proudly.

It fell down that mountain and landed at his feet. Slowly Sebastian dropped his rose eyes to the stick, the pedals falling down upon it. It was a part of Ciel there, but still it was not the part he needed…

Then, suddenly…it was like the room had just dropped to below zero degrees. Just as his figure was studied upwards from bottom to top, so was Ciel's. The boy's classy boots now touched his level, and Sebastian looked up from them to that top hat that recently met his head.

His whole body visually winced as the master directed his two servants to go, or more so it was at Tenaka to get the horses ready…it was just a reminder that he –was- going to be replaced…

Lips parted to address the other, but his words were stuck by a net within his throat. What should he call the Earl? How should he call him? Just as soon his jaw locked tightly, mouth closing when Ciel had convicted him. His hand clutched into fists, and his eyes closed tightly.

Again, his head screamed at him that this was no place for a demon…that this was no place for a demon to feel like this, and that a demon should not feel like this at all…if anything, he should be ripping Ciel apart, killing him, and taking his soul anyway. Yes, that's what he would do—He couldn't just stand there like this.

With a single step forward, he reached his arms out. He would pull the priced boy against him, front to back with his bare, unmarked, hands wrapped around him. "No- that's not why I came back…I can't fight you any longer…" His voice was soft, in a whisper almost. "I can't fight this any longer…"

Sebastian's had tormented him, visiting him every night in his dreams. Sometimes, he would come to Ciel's bed and ravage his mouth with kisses, until the boy would wake up, body on fire and shaking from feelings he didn't fully understand. Other times, he would dream he was the child in the stables, and Sebastian would come, melt away into his demon form and tear him to pieces, body and soul. Then he would be awakened by his own screams, his hand grasping for the gun he always slept with.

Other times, he would simply dream of Sebastian bringing him tea in the morning, smiling at him, opening his curtains and telling him of the day's plans, and then he would wake with a longing, a deep longing to see that face, Sebastian's beautiful face that, for two years had been the first thing he saw in the morning and the last thing he looked at before his eyes closed at night.

And so deep was that longing that for one brief second, as those strong arms encircled around him, he let himself be filled with the other's aroma, with the feel of his hands on him, with the softness of his voice. For one brief second, his hands came up to land gently on the others arms, to feel the soft material of his jacket. Then, his mind screamed at him that this was the spider, come to take his feed with him, suck him dry of all life.

How Sebastian yearned for this, ached for this, and needed this. His eyes closed just to nourish the feeling of Ciel within his arms. His head leaned down between his shoulder and neck as he took in the scent of him. He missed not smelling this boy. It was like a constant drug that was always there for him whenever he wanted, and now he had lost it. All he wanted to do was to hold him like this, here, forever.

Forever…

The boy instantly dug his fingers into the other, wrenched himself from the demon's grasp, whirling around to face him, his eye wide and flashing blue in anger, "Don't touch me!!"

That little and delicate had reached up to him, and just for a single moment it gave him a blessing…but it was really nothing more than a wolf in sheep's clothing. For what appeared to be the touch he so thirst for really turned out to be a bite. Teeth were sunk hard into his arm as he was pried away and cut with blades of words. 'Don't touch me.' Ciel said…

The young earl took several quick steps back away from the butler, fists clenching at his sides. Ciel cursed himself for showing weakness, for yearning for the other for so long. What was wrong with him? This was the demon that had voided his contract, destroyed his plans, mocked him openly, left him a defenseless, a ruined child! This was the demon that was probably here now, attempting to take his soul, bring him down to hell, just as he was attempting to rise. Well, he wouldn't allow it. "You can't fight me? This? What are you talking about?" The sound of horses could be heard then, Tenaka had brought the carriage to the front. The earl turned on the heel of his elegant boot, and began to walk towards the door. An annoyed sound escaped him and he stopped, glancing back at the other coldly.

'I can't fight you either...so I must run.'

"Just leave!"

Sebastian's eyes opened wide as it was like he had just literally been stabbed in his non-human heart with the Spear of Destiny. Then…his dead body was stabbed all over again just for fun as he was told to leave. If he was dead, then why did it hurt so bad? Why should he be so surprised? This was his own doing, after all.

Slowly the demon stood up straight, staring down at the floor with clenched hands as the noises of everything else became loud again.

His path was growing short. There were no longer side roads to take and to choose from. All he had now was a straight trail from where the Earl walked and to the door.

"No…" He said in practically a whisper, but then just the opposite as the single word was spoken again. "NO!" He stepped between the boy and those doors. "You said it yourself, you are nor my master anymore—" His face, his whole body, was determined, "So, I do not have to listen to you." A smile tried to form but it failed.

Sebastian dropped down to his knees, an action he had done so many times before in front of the other. "But please….reconsider. Resign the contract again…allow me to be your butler once more…" He kept his head up though, never once taking his eyes away from the one he so wanted. "…I need the contract…I need your soul…I cannot live without having it…having all of you. My body, my mind, my very being, craves you…I have to consume you…I have to have you with me! Ciel, I love you!" The words poured out of him. It was like he had become a bystander, watching this play from the audience instead of being a part of it. His face paled to white, his gaze wise and his hands trembled…This was…the first time…he had called that human by his name…

***

Meilin was sitting in the kitchen of the Phantomhive estate in London. There was a book in her lap and she was taking a 'break'. She had almost finished her duties of changing the sheets and dusting, breaking a few things along the way, leaving the house in a slightly more disordered state then when they had arrived. "Bard! Look at this! It's from a book I have been reading."

"A romance-ghost novel again?" Bard, who was bowed over a fireplace, stacking wood, turned to glance at the maid, a clicking noise leaving the back of his throat. Meilin blushed furiously and raised the book as fast as possible to cover her face.

"Oh ho ho! It's a book about love. Just listen!" The maid cleared her throat rather loudly, "It says, ¨each of us is born with a box of matches inside us, but we can't strike them all ourselves. Just like in life, we need oxygen and a candle to help."

"Oxygen?" Bard scratched the back of his head as looked at Meilin, brows furrowed slightly, a cigarette hanging loosely forms the corners of his mouth. The girl's glasses were steaming, and she quickly wiped them and continued.

"It explains it here! It says, 'The oxygen, for example, comes from the breath of a person you love, and the candle could be any caress, word or sound that engenders that explosion that lights one of the matches."

"So, each of us has matches inside of us, and the people we love light them?"

"Oooooh!! Exactly! How Romantic!"

The blond chef shook his head, "What a load of-" Bard checked himself, since he was in front of Meilin, and with a deep puff of his cigarette, continued to stack the firewood as the maid continued to gush over the book.

The house had to be warm for when the young master's arrival, and it was threatening to be the coldest winter London had ever seen.

***

The way Sebastian had moved swiftly in front of him, yelled his refusal to leave, blocked him from leaving his Manor, knelt before him...made motion impossible for Ciel. For two years, the butler had done everything he said. Every whim had been satisfied, and now his rebellion had Ciel frozen to the spot. But nothing surprised the boy more then the words about possession and want that streamed from the demon's lips, thrilling and frightening him. Ciel's knees trembled, and his fingers twitched, longing for the cane that had been dropped earlier.

_The first match lit..._

_"Ciel, I love you!"_

The words echoed inside Ciel's head. His eye was unlike a large sapphire as it widened once more to stare incredulously at the demon bowed before him. His lips parted, but no words could form. Somewhere inside the earl, something cracked; the ice around his heart began to melt, flooding him in emotion, filling his small frame. Was it true? Sebastian had returned because he was in love with him? He wanted to believe it.

_The second match was lit....then the third...quickly, they lit. The fourth...the fifth..._

I love you, those words, when had he last heart them? He suddenly saw his mother's face, young and beautiful, looking down at him. '_Ciel, my darling, Don't run too fast! I love you and I don't want to see you with too many scrapes on your knees...'_

His father's strong arms lifted into the sky. _'One day this will all be yours...my son, I love you.'_

Then, the smell of burning flesh, the flames that engulfed his home. The chains against his ankles, the pain, the mocking laughter, the pain in his eye in the stables...

It was too much for Ciel. Inside him, a fire exploded, the remaining candles lit too quickly, sparked, burned inside of him.

And then they went out.

The Earl of Phantomhive's heart once again became lifeless.

The ice reformed around him. The darkness returned to hover. A shadow passed through his features, and his eye once more became murky. Fingers came to slide through his hair, fisting there. He shut his eye tightly, as if wanting to shield himself from Sebastian's very existence, and it seemed like an eternity that he just stood there, breathing. He finally spoke, his voice hollow, "Don't you dare mock me. You're a demon, what could you possibly know about love? All you have is your aesthetics."

He lowered his hands, his eye opening to stare at the ground, and his voice was slightly shaky as he continued, not wanting to hear the other's reply, "That which is gone, can never return." A hand moved to touch his eye patch, "Like them you left me alone. Our contract is gone. You abolished it. Have you forgotten? I haven't." He looked up at him then, and even he could not repress the hurt in his face, "I will never forget the last thing you said to me, that day in the stables..."

He crossed the distance between them, Small fingers pressed against the others shoulder. He leaned his mouth to the other's ear, and one whisper left his lips, an icy breath, "Nevermore." He turned quickly, not wanting to show his face, and side-stepping the other's body, walked out of his manor, away from his oxygen, his candle. Lifting a small boot, the earl stepped into his carriage. His face was pale as a ghost as he turned it to Tenaka, "Shut the door. I am certain he will find a way out. " He gave the older butler a dim, cold smile that didn't reach his eyes. "We should hurry, London waits."

Was this what it felt like before you died? The idea of no longer being a part of the world you have so well come to know and lived in…that you were going to be no more, and embrace the unknown…

_"Ciel, I love you."_ Had been his last breath…death was not granted to him though, but rather he was stuck…without air, without breathing…all his oxygen had been scooped up and given to Ciel to light his matches.

The demon couldn't breath. His heart had stopped. Ciel's words circled around Sebastian's head. He was right…what could he possibly know about love? He wanted to laugh. He wanted to cry. He couldn't though…he was stuck in the ice that was the seventh layer of hell—forever frozen: Betrayal. He had betrayed Ciel that day and left him in the stables…just as the boy told him: Nevermore!

"I didn't mean-" The words flew out of Sebastian's mouth, but it was all too soon that his body remained him that he was supposed to be dead…no, it wasn't his body, but rather it was Ciel that reminded him.

Looking at that face, Sebastian saw right through Ciel. There was always that cold or expressionless formation upon the boy's features, but not now. Sebastian saw through the mask and he saw the hurt that was there.

He wanted to save him…even without the stupid mark of the contract…Sebastian wanted to save Ciel…he wanted to save both themselves from this ice that surrounded their bodies. So then…why couldn't he? Why couldn't he break the ice around them and just grab hold of the boy who was so close to him and yet so far at the same time…

Ciel leaned in, his hot breath against his ear that was even cold enough to send a shiver down Satan's spine himself. That single word that Leonard had said was repeated—nevermore. Nevermore was this supposed to be…nevermore was there going to be a struggle of emotion…and here he was, not Leonard…but Sebastian…trying to start it up again.

So easily then Ciel walked away…his words fading just as he did. Sebastian's body felt so heavy. He fell forward on both knees and hands, as if a boulder was dropped on his back of all his mistakes and sins that he was going to be forced to carry for eternity. He stared at the floor…unable to move, save fore his trembling. It wasn't supposed to be like this…


	10. No

This manor, this mansion, was heaven. It had a small that radiated bliss and perhaps piece…but it was just an air freshener cover for the actual chaos within. Still, it was the scent of Ciel…and nothing would change the fact that Sebastian was a fallen angel—a demon. He was a creature that was forever to be outside of heaven's gates; a jealous being that could never get what he wanted….or even needed. It was really no question as to why demons were so resentful and muddled.

The sound of the carriage was pulled away in a wave by the ocean outside. No matter how badly Sebastian wanted to stay here, forever, he couldn't…Heaven now turned into Limbo. He was stuck, and he needed to make his way out of Limbo, throw this boulder off his back, and get into Heaven no matter what it took. If he didn't act…he would be stuck here forever…

And, what humiliating feeling was this? A demon put on a bed of needles by a human? Things were all out of order…one part of him said he couldn't do a thing about it, the other part said that he could…he was higher on the food chain, and he should get what he wanted. However, it was that same voice that asked him over and over if this little brat was worth it…or even why he loved a human to begin with!

The city streets…Sebastian's once perfect shoes stood on the flooded sidewalk. He was without his butler attire, but rather just his button down shirt and his long over coat. Bare hands raised up to feel around his face the way the blind might identify someone. He could still not get rid of this image of himself…

After a moment he held out his hand in the air. The rain pinched his palm a bit…it was starting to turn to ice due to the season winds…ice…and snow…all around people were struggling to walk in the slushy mess of London…Sebastian could related to that sight…life was just a big slushy, dirty, mix…and he was trying to make is way through it to get to his destination….

Down the street…through an alley way…a door that tried to be hidden—a buried treasure, was not unknown to the demon. Opening the door, a rusted bell chimed. He walked down a staircase that appeared as if it would break if one was not too careful. A man sat a stool at the bottom. The rugged man glared at him. Sebastian gave him a smile and lifted a finger. The man fell unconscious…or "to sleep" as it would appear.

Around the corner he went, entering the literal bloody mess of crowds and yells. The scene was not unlike traditional dogfights, only the dogs were people—a fight club.

Yes, Sebastian knew the citizens of London, who they were, and what went on. Most of the men here were scruffy with buzz cuts, but there was one scruffy man with long black hair. He was the best fighter that never got his luscious locks pulled on once. The demon eyed him within the waiting line. Just as he was watching, others were watching him as well…Sebastian was a 'new face' who surely didn't look like he belonged in such a place. He was not questioned though since he had gotten past the guard…

His presence melted through the crowed like the snake curling around the forbidden tree in the Garden of Eden. And then…the forbidden fruit. "Charles Arlmat…" Sebastian's voice said to his target, a hand on his shoulder. A fist was instantly swung at him, but it was just as instantly avoided. "I need to talk to you…"

The fighter was suspicious for a moment, but once Sebastian placed some cash within the man's pocket, he had him….

Now, the scene was very different. Charles stood within the Phantomhive town house, were the finest butler attire, his hair groomed and pinned back in a pony tail that touched just above his shoulder blades, and a superb amount of bangs framed his face. Sebastian knew what sort of men Ciel liked, the sort of man that the boy had desired him to look like, and he had given Charles the same physical charm with his makeover.

***

Ciel Phantomhive sat in the office, elbows propped against the smooth mahogany of his desk, his uncovered eye closed. The windows were fogged, hiding the snow that fell gently against London outside. It was evening, and the elegant streetlamps around the city were lit, fired crackling inside homes. The earl held a spoon in his hand, the one he used to stir some tea that had been placed in front of him by a young Irish butler. Ciel opened his eye, focusing it on his reflection on the spoon. He took a deep breath, letting the aroma of the tea fill him as he studied his distorted reflection. He then moved his eye slowly to Tenaka and nodded his chin just slightly.

Giving the signal, the older butler turned to the young one, who had come all the way from Brighton when he had heard the infamous Earl was interviewing for a new butler. Tenaka cleared his throat, "Thank you…Mr. MacDonald…for your time, you have shown yourself to be very competent. The Earl will contact you in a few days time when he has made his decision."

The young man bowed, giving the earl one last excited look before taking his leave.

Once they were alone, Ciel spoke coldly, "Tenaka… how many have we seen today? "

"Fifty, bouchan."

"Fifty…" A small sigh escaped Ciel's lips. The boy had a headache, a dull pulsing at his temples. "Tenaka, bring me some proper cake, please." His fingers moved to push away the fiftieth cup he had tried that day. He spun in his chair to gaze out the window, letting his fingers glide over his ring, an elegant frown forming on his young lips.

Ciel, I love you.

Ciel flinched at the memory of those words, words that had haunted him since they were uttered. Throughout the entire interview process he kept hearing them, swimming in his head, kept seeing Sebastian's face, kept being flooded with memories of their time together. The way his black hair would sweep over his forehead when he bowed, the way he smelled, the way his velvet voice would wake him up…Still, the master of repression did just that, and kept his outer calm, though even he couldn't hide the bored expression that would escape from time to time as more and more butlers arrived to be interviewed.

Fifty butlers interviewed in the week Ciel had been in London. Fifty put through all kinds of tests. The master of the house had the various Maitre D's make various cakes, sweets, teas, and he even made several throw utensils. Some of them were very competent but…Ciel found a fault in each of them. One was too old, the other too young, that one's cake was too sweet, and the other's tea was too watery. The bothersome, tiresome truth was that after being with perfection, everyone else seemed…lackluster. They just weren't Sebastian.

Suddenly, the earl's thoughts were interrupted, as there was a knock on the door. He spun back slowly on his chair, crossed his legs. Ah, Tenaka with the cake.

The butler moved in, and bowed to his master. Behind him, there was a soft rustle and some footsteps. "Sir…there is another butler here…"

"But, we had no more interviews scheduled today, Se- Tenaka."

"Yes, I told him that, but he insisted…"

Ciel frowned deeply; more from having accidentally called the elder by Sebastian's name than by the bothersome task of seeing another butler. A little annoyed sound escaped his lips but he nodded, "Very well…send him in."

"Earl Phantomhive…" The man said with a strong look in his eyes.

Ciel looked up with a bored expression, and saw Sebastian. He blinked once, tensing, back getting straighter against his chair only to see that he had been fooled, that it was someone else. He exhaled the breath he didn't realize he was holding. His sapphire eye roamed over the male's face, telling nothing, his face was detached, unreadable. "Yes…you're here for the butler position? I need you to do several tasks for me. First, you must bake me a devils food cake, and prepare some tea. "

He looked at Tenaka, who bowed in understanding and spoke up, "Please, come to the kitchen…you have it at your disposal for making the cake."

As the two spoke, Ciel continued to watch the butler. His stomach tightened. They were alike, very much alike in physical appearance, in the elegance of their costume…but he doubted, that this man could bake as well as his twin. The boy let a small curse escape parted lips.

Ciel was looked over, studied, and Charles just smiled at him and then bowed. _'Be sure to smile a lot.' _His employer told him. That 'mysterious' man had not given him his name, but everyone was certain who he was. It was the talk among the rich folk why the Phantomhive master was looking for a new butler. Rumors were all around…none of them the truth. "Yes, my name is Charles Arlmat, it is an honor to meet you." He said when questioned.

Once he was given the order, the man nodded and stood back up where he followed the elder butler.

_'Agree to everything without question.' _Sebastian's voice echoed in his head.

And, that's exactly what he did. There he was lead into the kitchen, and the truth was that Mister Charles had not the slightest clue about making anything or even how to boil water. "Thank you, sir." He said to Tenaka before the butler left him to use the kitchen.

Gloved hand closed the door. "Well—?" Charles' tone changed to something dark and careless. Outside the small kitchen window was a raven. It's head tilted to the side as it looked in, making sure the coast was clear. Then…it was gone. From behind Charles appeared Sebastian. The man rapidly turned around with his fist raised, but the swing was caught by the demon. A shudder ran down Charles spine. "How the bloody hell did you get in here?"

Sebastian smiled more with a half laugh. "Remember, do not ask questions…" He said as he walked passed the man and started to bake a cake and boil tea without effort. It would always be just as splendid as always, but he was sure to add a touch of cinnamon to the cake, something he had never done before when making devil's food cake, so that it would not reflect him entirely. Suspicion needed to be avoided. "Hmph…" He snorted with a glare at the cake. Yes, this surely was a cake of a devil…

Within a quick amount of time, it was ready and prepared with Earl Grey tea on a silver trey. "Now, serve this to him…"

Charles gave a stiff nod and did as he was told. He knocked on the boy's door and waited…

Tenaka opened it to let the man in. His own eyes roamed over him, noticing the similarity to Sebastian, but the elder kept quiet, standing by the door. Ciel had arranged some toy soldiers on his desk and held one in his small fingers as Charles walked in.

Being given his permission to enter, Charles did just that and brought the tray around to where he was directed to. It would normally be difficult for a man such as Charles to keep such a cool and patient manner, but it was an easy task for the amount of money was being paid. Even if he really was interested in being this baby's butler, the amount of pounds would never add up in all his life time for what his employer had to offer him.

So, the game was played. Charles stood at Ciels side to act out his game card character. His brown eyes traveled around the room, looking at various objects, but most of all he stared at the door. He had to get it locked…and he had to get the child and him alone without the geezer.

Ciel barely looked up to acknowledge him, but then… a scent, a delicious scent wafted into the earl's nose, through the room now that evening had set. The boy's eye moved from the soldier slowly to look up again, focusing on the Charles's face, then shifting to the tray in his hand. And for a reason he couldn't explain, his body tingled. The earl lowered the toy soldier onto the desk as Tenaka directed the younger butler to set the tea down on a nearby coffee table.

Without a word, Ciel stood up and moved to the elegant sofa before the table, sat down, and crossed his legs. He reached out, curled his fingers around the silver fork and dug it into the moist cake. The food was brought to his lips and he took a bite, chewing it slowly. Still, not a word was spoken, but did his cheeks flush slightly in the dark room? Then, he took the teacup in his small hand, brought it to his lips, and let the aroma tickle his nose; fill his senses, before he sipped the tea.

He lowered the cup, his eye widened and flashed blue as his head jerked up and he stared at the butler, a ripple of emotion in his voice, "Did... someone help you with this?"

Ciel spoke Charles him then, snapping his gaze back to the boy. His voice sounded different this time compared to the previous few words he spoke just before to him. Was that real ex-butler such a good cook to raise someone's senses and emotions like that? Little Charles know…Sebastian did have the power to do that to Ciel…"No…" He said with a smile. "How could anyone help me with that? It has been my dream to be a butler, a jack of all trades, my whole life….do you like it?

Ciel looked at Charles, his lips curving into a slight frown, then turned away to look at the cake, and to hide the faint blush of embarrassment that had crept to his cheeks. The earl felt foolish for his outburst. Of course, no one had helped him. What was he thinking? The youth had a determined look on his face as he took another bite, letting the flavor linger against his pallet, closing an eye. He swallowed, and said nothing for a moment, then looked at the elder butler.

"Tanaka, please go and bring the utensils, and the dartboard…" The old man bowed at his master's voice, knowing it was time for the second part of the interview, and exited quietly shutting the door behind him. Ciel fixed his eye on Charles, scrutinizing him. His cake had been excellent, and the tea, superb. It almost reminded him of Sebastian's...almost...there had been too much cinnamon in the cake, a mistake Sebastian would never have met. Sebastian's sweets were perfection, and in truth, Ciel's tongue craved them. He finally understood, what the children who lined up for his sweets and toys felt like, desiring a certain taste, a certain aroma, so badly.

Still, this butler had come very close, and yet why did he feel...disappointed? It was as if, deep down, he didn't want to...

_Ciel, I love you._

Two small fist clenched. He buried the thoughts, the emotions, deep down, because he had his kingdom to rebuild. Then, there was her Majesty to think about. He couldn't put off her letters and orders much longer. He finally spoke, leaning a head in his hand, giving him that dim smile, speaking in that cold, elegant British voice, "Tell me, Charles. What experience do you have, as a butler?"

There it was the clock…and the ceiling hook where the spider plant hung from. It was exactly how Sebastian had told him it would be. Everything was in place. He was sure of it that, man was this kid's old butler. For a second Charles wondered why this job was so important to the guy, but he cared not to question it further. All that mattered was the payment.

Hastily his eyes lowered back on the child that ate the cake. It was almost time…Then, the old man was sent out. Since things were going according to plan, Ciel should be questioning him more for the interview process…and that exactly what happened. He was asked what experience he had as a butler. Charles smiled again, but it was unlike his previous smirks. "Well…you see…when it comes to being a real butler…" He said as he casually walked over to the office door and flicked the lock. "The truth is…I have no skills at all…but when it comes to having the training of your previous butler…" He turned back around, walking in front of the boy.

Ciel saw him lock the door, sapphire orb immediately narrowing, "What? What do you know about my previous butler?" A flicker of fear passed through him. He had been in enough dangerous situations to recognize them when they were approaching, and right now his body tingled with apprehension. Had he been right? Was this man somehow connected to Sebastian? His fingers tightened against the teacup, trying to piece together the puzzle that was suddenly forming in his mind.

"We are quite the same…" It was true that this dialogue wasn't part of what Sebastian ordered, but Charles got a bit excited when knowing it was going to be his turn to fight in the ring next. "That is…everyone knows about how your butler was your little body guard…I have physical skills as well."

The man invited himself to sit down on the couch beside the boy. "I could put someone in the sleeper hold within a second…that is, if I so picked to…like this-"

Something was wrong. No aristocrat, let alone a servant would ever invite themselves to sit next to an Earl. The boy quickly turned his attention to the door, parting lips to call out to Tenaka, and this proved to be a fatal move.

Charles pulled Ciel to him, even if he had that cake and tea as he didn't care if it spilt. Without any warning at all, Charles knocked Ciel out with the famous sleeper hold…

.Words caught in Ciel's throat as the man's arms circled around his neck and the boy´s entire body tensed, his eye widening and then closing as he everything went black...

Meanwhile, outside those office doors all the other servants would also be asleep in whatever spot they stood…only it was not from Charles's hold, but rather something else.

A devil grinned as he walked passed the dreaming…

_1…2…3…go to sleep~_

The two butlers had precise tactics they were to both follow. It was Charles's job to just take 'care' of Ciel, while Sebastian would 'tend' to those outside the room. However, they both shared a common ground: Rope.

It was all so perfect, the way the rope circled around the boy's supple neck and how solid the noose was to its design. Upon waking up, the Earl would not only find that he was on the floor with his hands tied behind his back, but that his dear spider plant was as well. As if it was a mock to be placed in the boy's face, literally, the plan was sprawled out…dead…in front of him. The long vines reached across the floor. They clung for a last bit of life that was rejected to them. Its spilt over against Ciel like a fallen person breaking their head open as the blood poured out of them.

So why the demise of the plant? The hook was needed. Attached to Ciel's neck was a rope wrapped around it, formed into a noose that was sung around the ceiling hook. Holding the opposite end of the rope was Charles. Right now there was plenty of leeway, but all the man had to do was to step back, pull the rope and pick Ciel up off the floor…and this room would become his own personal gallows.

This….this was why Sebastian needed a fighter—someone strong, someone that could lift and hold a boy up with rope with ease…someone that knew all the moves, someone that could apply the sleeper move within a second's need…

One eyelid fluttered open, and there was a shift of Ciel's body, a soft groan escaping dry lips. The Earl's orb was met with the green, lifeless plant in front of him. His eyes gazed at it as his vision began to focus, barely conscious of a dull pain at his wrists. He blinked several times and then awareness hit like lightning. This was his office? He was on the floor? His hands? He tried to move them from behind his back, but was met with merciless, unyielding rope. In fact, he couldn't move his legs either! The earl began to struggle, jerking his body, only to find a rough pressure digging at his throat, making him choke and arch his head back to try and lessen the feeling, "What...What is this?!"

His eye shifted around him wildly as panic caused his breath to pick up and heart race. He was obviously in deep trouble. He parted his lips to yell for Tanaka and the guards, but something, perhaps all his experience in horrendous situations, told him not too. That if he did, he would be killed that very instant. He could do nothing, except lie there bounded and wait to see what face fate wore this time.

A deep irritated breath exited through Charles lips. This was becoming ever so boring. With another glance to the clock, the man couldn't wait for Ciel to come-to. He just wanted his damn money. 1:03 PM…it was exactly as Sebastian had predicted. "Eh~" The fake butler's attention perked back at seeing the slight movement in the boy's body on the floor. "Hah…" He let out a laugh as he just waited for him to say something. "This? This is just a little something I had to do." Charles answered when questioned.

He took some steps back and tugged at the rope. It pulled over the hook some more so that it would drag the other up from his laying position on the floor. With ease he took more and more of the rope inward. With each haul, Ciel would be dragged upward more…basically forcing the boy to stand straight if he didn't want to be choked. The situation was obvious though…The more Charles yanked the rope to him, the more it would lift his sitting target. "No hard feelings though, right? I mean, this is your own fault." He shrugged and said carelessly without any fear on his side. He was sure the 'other man' had tied the rest of the servants outside the door up like he had planned…binding them by their wrists and ankles so that they could not move even if they were called for.

Ciel winced as he felt the rough rope pressing against the skin of his neck, forcing him up to rise to a kneeling position quickly, then to his feet. The earl had been in a situation like this, more than once...But now, there was no Sebastian to save him. He was a knight without sword, or shield. He felt once again the helpless pet, and panic rose within him, making it difficult to breathe and his legs tremble. How ironic, that just when he placed the first brick on his new kingdom, it was being smashed down again.

_'Wait...'_

There was one arm he had against this man. He pushed his fear deep down inside him and kept his eye on Charles, intense and imploring, "Do you know who I am? I am richer than you can even dream. Whatever you want, I will give it you. Whoever is paying you to kill me, I will double, triple that amount...I will give you anything, but let me go."

_'Keep him talking. Keep him talking, and someone is bound to enter.'_

This really was no sweat at all. Charles laughed to himself as he couldn't believe that he was getting paid for this. Ciel was a light as a feather to him. Another tug. The rope creaked as if trying to cry out for help. The voice was not heard.

It really was a good feeling to be in control like this, but Charles had to admit…he would have enjoyed a bit more of a fight. Oh well, the amount of pounds he was being offered was too much to act on his own will. "Tch…" He smirked some more at what he heard from the boy's slowly damaging voice. The other man had warned him of this and had assured him that no amount could be more than what he was getting. It was almost hard to believe that it was possible. Besides, Sebastian had already given him half up front. Human greed was strong though…Charles was ever so tempted to double check and to question. This was the earl, after all. The phony butler bit his lip in hesitation. He was not supposed to inquire, and he was supposed to say that he wasn't getting paid to do this…rather it was his own desire.

It was only the two of them for two more minutes…Charles kept his eyes on the clock again. Sebastian stated he would know if he did go against the plan…but how could he? It's not like he was here…"Heh, alright…fine—Give me your best offer?"

The door slammed open then. "Ciel!" Sebastian took a heavy step in, appearing to breathe hard. It also appeared his gaze was on the Earl, but really his red glance was past him…targeting Charles…as if saying 'I know what you are doing…and you are doing it wrong.'

Charles's face paled and he even dropped the rope a bit from a shiver.

_Greed..._

Sometimes, it could be on your side. Sometimes, someone else's sin can be your salvation. Ciel kept his eye on Charles, because it was important to show that he was serious. His life was at stake here, and he had to tread carefully, "Whatever amount you-" but his words were cut off, as Sebastian stepped in. Ciel's breath was taken away, his face showing all the shock that passed through his body. "Se..Sebastian!" he cried out, incredulous, as he swayed forward slightly from the sudden release of the rope's pressure on his throat, and logical or not, a feeling of relief passed through the child.

Without even thinking, out of pure habit, Ciel cried out, "Sebastian, save me!!" His hand tugged at the unyielding rope at his wrist, wanting to show the contract. He caught himself doing this, and closed an eye, flushing from a sudden shame. His pride.... another sin. No! Right now, he would not allow it to be his ruin. The earl opened an eye again, fixed it on the demon, almost daring him, wanting to see how he would act.

_Ciel…Ciel…Ciel…_

Every time Sebastian spoke his name out loud like that, it didn't feel like the worlds came from his lips, but rather his heart…yet, this was only the second time he said the boy's name…and it gave him the same intense responsiveness and conviction as the last time.

Who was this he was looking at though? What horrible sight was this? Sebastian tried to con Charles with his eyes some more, but he just couldn't keep his sight on him. His eye's were selfish for the boy…and looking at this situation, this monster Charles that he had created, was so repulsive.

Anguish took over his expression, his brow lifting and shoulders dropping. What was this sensation? Shame? A realization what he had just done? Was this…a conscience? No…demon's didn't have consciences…nor did they have love…but…

"Who the hell are you!?" Charles's called out, but all that Sebastian, but all that the demon could hear or see was that…child. Ciel…he spoke those words…and his name, 'Sebastian, save me.'

A sharp single breath escaped him. He felt cold. He knew what he should do…and that was just make that rope split and bring Ciel into his arms…

"Oi! Oi!" Charles' was starting to get flustered…Sebastian's lips parted; his words conflicted between what to speak. It was like that look that Ciel had given him was something that chained him to the floor…pulling him down so hard that it broke through the floor…no, broke through the earth and bounded him to the rocky depths of Hell…

Without any hint of sign then, Charles had grunted and made the choice to act on his own. "Oi, Seb—er-sir!" He said again at Sebastian…wondering why the man wasn't speaking. Wasn't this the part where he was supposed to be taunting the boy, and then saving him and breaking out in a fight with him? He wanted to fight!

When one cannot control their own destiny, when they come face to face with fate, when it's claws are clutched around one's body, time moves slower, all you can do is watch. Ciel could do nothing but watch, watch Sebastian, and wait. It was only when the other butler spoke, that he felt anything. He stared at Sebastian. "You know each other?" The dim feeling of realization then as Charles almost said Sebastian's name? The boy's face changed slowly, slowly the shadow passed through his childish feature, and through his eye, which now could bare nothing but accusation to the demon in front of him. He really was a fallen king. How could he be so foolish as to think that the demon would relinquish its prey?

The boy's face took an a strange expression, he parted his lips, letting out a hollow laugh and these cold words, "...the spider has finally come to suck me dry!"

"Shuddup!" Charles growled as he jerked the rope, pulling most of it back stiff so that it would direct Ciel back up. Only if the boy stood on his toes, would he still have air.

As if on cue, he was further restrained. Ciel made a choked sound as the rope suddenly cut into his throat, pulling his body up to his tiptoes, making him arch his head back and breathing difficult, his chest rising and falling as he gasped for air. No! What was happening? He winced, trying to focus on the actions around him, but it was impossible, all he could manage to focus on was trying to get air into his lungs.

The young king tried to gather his thoughts, but his vision was blurring fro the strain of his body, and he barely managed the next words, "Checkmate."

What was Ciel saying next? Had he been seen right through? Had his evil been manifested into something physical? Some sort of creature that loomed behind him and spoke each word of his guilty plan read out loud into Ciel's ear? "What…" Sebastian could only respond with in a dry voice.

Several blinks fluttered as Sebastian tried to process everything, and he was brought back to reality. The rest of the room showed again…and he could see both Ciel, Charles, and that plant with that dirt all over the floor. "N…No!" Was that impeding word yelled due to being discovered, or because that oxygen was in danger of being taken away from the boy for real now.

How long had he been out of it? Captured by Ciel? Here was the spider, and yet it was the fly that was eating the spider instead. Who was sucking who dry? Did it really cause for Charles to question how he was?

He ran up to Ciel, one hand placed on his shoulder…, the demon's eyes plastered back on Charles. He got the message. "Ahhah! What foolishness is this? I've never seen this guy before!" The fake butler acted.

Quickly his glance shifted back to Ciel's eye…his hand shaking upon him, which he had not even realized. In his head…things were different…he was supposed to be standing there in front of him, taunting him, making him say that he needed him out loud…

The boy actually flinched at Sebastian's touch as his hand came to grasp his shoulders. How could one crave something, and detest it all at once? He didn't have much time to ponder this though, as the rough pulling on his throat made his eye close and more choked sounds escape his lips as he tried to breath, but it was impossible, the rope pressed into his wind pipe blocking any air from entering. He began to see black at the corners of his eye, and there was no other sensation then the desperate need for air.

Pull~ Charles lifted Ciel up more, now with nothing below his feet. Sebastian's hand slid down him in the process by it simply staying in the same place…

Here…here was his chance to say something like, 'Tell me you need me, or else I won't save you.' But no…his body spoke instead, and his body spoke different words than that. Snap. The rope broke, and he would be there to catch the smaller…

Then the air came, rushed into him as he fell, fell into those arms that so often had carried him. Here was fate, clutching him in its claws. Now would he be sucked dry? Ciel looked up at Sebastian with half-lidded, glazed eyes, mouth parted and tongue hanging out just slightly as his body greedily took in the large breaths it had been without. He wanted to say something, but at that moment, his body betrayed him with its weakness.

Is this what it felt like to be human? Sebastian wondered. How could he be experiencing this? This was…what it felt like not to be himself…that was for sure…or was it? Maybe this was the real him after all…The idea of it made him tremble.

There…he held Ciel in his arms. The body was so fragile in his grasp, as if he were holding his own glass heart that only existed in a woman's dream. "Ci…master…" He whispered. Even without the mark of the demonic contract, Ciel would always…and forever…be his master. He had all control over him. "Master…I'm sor…"

His words were interrupted by Charles, "Oi! What do you think you are doing! That boy is mine!" He said with a large grin, throwing the rope down in façade anger. Good, this was the part he had been waiting for…the part where he got to fight!

Sebastian closed his eyes, a lack of expression on his face as he hid any emotion. Of course, what he really was going through right now was annoyance. Charles was getting so irritating.

As carefully as he could, he placed the boy down in the nearest chair and removed the noose from around his neck. "Ciel…" He wavered between both his name and title. Slowly his ungloved hands brushed some bangs away from the Earl's face while feeling his soft flesh in the process. Without a word, he would lean in forward and just barely brush his lips against the child's cheek.

Each deep breath brought full consciousness closer. He didn't struggle as he was placed on the nearest chair. Ciel looked up at Sebastian's face, trying to read it, confusion flickering through his own features. What was it he saw in those red eyes? It was so strange, but the way that his bangs were brushed away from his face and when the demon moved to ghost his lips over his, it was almost an affectionate touch. He turned his face away slightly, to let his eye meet on Charles. However, they weren't on him long.

Sebastian stood up straight then, his eyes bright red as he looked at Charles who was already in a stance. "Hmph…" All Sebastian did was glare, narrow his eyes, and Charles screamed—loud. He fell to his feet, both legs breaking and snapping from his knees joints.

"Ahh! What the bloody hell! What do think you are doing!! We were supposed to—" Crack. The man's head was twisted around his neck. The captor was now the one without air…

Ciel looked away again as he heard that horrendous crack of bone, and he felt revulsion and sickness enter his system. There was a lump in his throat and he bowed his head, his bangs curtaining his pale face. How familiar this had become! Death. How close it always was to him, that one thing he wanted to evade the most.

In times like these, when he was vulnerable, when destruction was near, the shadows threatened him, they hovered over his head, those memories. He could always see them, the way they had held him down, the way that brander had seared his flesh. He could feel it then. The boy 's body shuddered and he looked around, almost feeling nauseous. His eye landed on Sebastian... he fascinated and confused Ciel's acute mind like nothing else.

He pushed the shadows away, because he had a different darkness to face now. Was Sebastian his savior? Was he his murderer? He couldn't piece together this puzzle, this was a game that had contradictory rules. It was like a maze that kept changing its path. Could he find the answer? He took a deep breath, knowing there was only one way to find that answer. A stream of questions flowed out of the boy's mouth, "Sebastian, what is this? This man implied he knows you, and now you kill him? You come to take my life, and yet you save me? Why? Why are you here? What do you want from me?" He sat upright, giving him an intense look, "Do you want to kill me? Consume my soul? Well, what are you waiting for?!"

That dirt which stained the floor like blood…was now evolved into the metaphor it appeared to be. Red liquid seeped to the soil. Perhaps some of the plant still attached to its life force would confused the blood for water…blood for water…Was there any difference any more?

In one hand Sebastian held water, in the other he held blood. The water fell through his fingers so easily, but so did the blood…the only difference was that the red liquid took longer to reach the ground…still, in the end, it was on the ground right with the water…

A shadow blanketed over the mask the demon wore. With his back turned to Ciel, he stared at the broken body of Charles. The more the demon stayed silent from the boy, the more words were spat at him. His hands formed fists into his sides. It was like the walls of the room were growing tighter and tighter at him with each question Ciel spoke… "No-" He growled the word, but then repeated it more firmly. "NO!" He whipped around, his long bangs swaying behind him in the motion. "That's--" He narrowed his eyes down at the boy. A lie was on the tip of his tongue. He was about to tell Ciel that he didn't know the man either in return…but demons could not lie…they also could not love…so…he was becoming more human after all. Love made people lie.

His lips twitched as he fought those words. With a snort, he turned himself back around, pivoting on his heel and stared back at his dead client. "You…should go help the others…I saw…them tied up." He said without answering the proposed inquires for a moment more. "Ciel…" His voice hissed then, a single black feather would seemingly fall out of nowhere onto the boy's lap. "Have you really not noticed…at all…? I've been watching you…I've been keeping an eye on you from the sky…forever."

It was still so strange to hear his name from the others lips, from that velvet voice that held a slight dangerous edge, and it made Ciel shiver involuntarily. His own fists clenched at his sides, partly from the conflicting emotions inside him, partly from the horrible stench that began to invade his senses. He kept his uncovered eye fixed on a painting on the wall, trying to hold his breath as much as possible. He wanted answers to questions, even if it meant fighting the feeling of nausea that began to creep into his throat. He opened his mouth to demand the answers the other had evaded, but then Sebastian mentioned the others being tied up. Ciel's eye widened and his dark blue gaze shot to the door. A piece of the puzzle fell into place for the boy, and his eye slowly narrowed. Watching, why? To ridicule the fallen king? Why had Sebastian returned? Was it really for the reason he had spoken in the Manor? Why did he want to reinstate the contract? And most importantly, what was it about this creature that fascinated him? That frightened him and thrilled him?

The smell was getting worse by the minute and he could feel the blood rush from his face. Despite this, the boy quickly raised a hand to bring the feather to his other eye, covering it and looking at him through the thin, silky fibers.

You cannot leave here until you answer my questions, Sebastian. Tell me you won't leave, until you have." He would not go outside to help the others until he had some kind of affirmation, however much it was worth, from the demon.

Part of this job was still left undone. There was the other half of the payment that needed to be taken care of with Mister Charles here on the floor. Hopefully the boy would heed his words and take care of the other members of this household so that he could dispose of this corpse. Even though he was no longer a butler, the idea of having this mess caused by him in front of Ciel made him feel tart. He waited to hear the footsteps of the boy…but footsteps sounded like just more words then.

His already fisted hands at his sides clenched tighter his long nails digging into his palm. So, he couldn't leave until he answered him? "Is that so?" His lips curved into an upwards arch. "In that case, I shall stay forever…" He turned back around again, smiling almost a bit too kindly at the sight of the child holding his feather. "I've told you…the answer is 'no'…" He stepped closer to Ciel. He seated himself on his knees in front of him and went to place his hands on the boy's hips. His red ruby of eyes glimmered once within the light's reflection. "It was a single word, but a multiple answer to half your questions….then there's the others in which word 'no' could not be used for—Why am I here…do I want to consume your soul…everything else, the reply is the same. Also, understand that since I am no longer your butler and in contract…I am not inclined to answer you if I do not wish."

The demons hands on Ciel's felt cold, and yet he leaned back quickly, as if those hands burned him. He let the feather fall to the ground and kept his gaze on the demons face, trying to read it. He could easily be lying, after all, there was nothing forcing him to tell the truth. His lips parted, and he spoke in a voice so soft it had to be to himself, "If you entered into a contract with me, you would have to tell the truth..."

Ciel then finally pulled himself up and turned on his heel and walked out of the room quickly, grateful for the distance from the demon. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his feeling of anxiety that had risen in him without him really being aware. It was difficult though as he found that the servants were indeed tied up, in a line along the corridor, their eyes wide, incoherent mumbles escaping form their bound mouths. The boy fumbled with the knots, and it took him a long time to free all four servants. They spoke at once, saying they remembered nothing, only waking up like that. Ciel brought his hand to the skin between his eyebrows; trying to keep his stoic, calm appearance. He explained that a burglar had come in and tried to steal things, but that...Sebastian had showed up once again and managed to kick the burglar out. He had wanted to avoid bringing up the other, but it was inevitable. They were bound to see him walking through the halls.

Of course Finnian and Meilin went wild with excitement and curiosity, asking questions and looking around for the sight of the butler. Tanaka just laughed that Santa Claus like laugh. Ciel quickly stood up without further explanation and made his way to his office, ignoring any further remarks from the servants, concentrating on a game plan.

There Charles body lay on the coroner's table. He was dead, his flesh graying and his insides being dissected at. The artists applied make-up to his face to hide the cloud of death. Then, along came Ciel. He felt his hand on him, and it brought him back to life.

It was only for a second, but in these times in which Sebastian had his touch upon the boy was only when he felt what could be considered alive. All the other hours of his hell of a life he was nothing more than walking corpse that could not feel a single thing unless his touch was on that child…Life and then death all over again…The demons face became unsavory turn as Ciel walked away from him in his head. The feeling of his heart sinking was becoming all too familiar even though the sensation was new to him.

Sebastian's cold lifeless lips parted to speak, but nothing came out. He stood there for a moment longer, just staring at the office entrance. With a single wince, he turned back around and walked over to the body of Charles on the floor. He stared down at him. He was like him now—dead, unable to experience a thing in the living world—joy, sorry, emotions, and love…it was all over for him. "I am of my word…" Sebastian's smirked found him again. He reached into his pocket and took out a bag that contained pure gold coins. Carelessly he tossed it on the body. "I said I would pay you the next half when the job was done." A single laugh escaped him. He just left out the detail about the killing part. The silly humans should listen to the churches more often when they said not to make deals with the devil.

_TO BE CONTINUED…_


	11. A New Cup of Tea

The chipper voices of Meilin and Finnian could be heard in the hall. Sebastian's expression became dry again as he turned to look back in the direction of the door. He was stuck between a lie and the truth. He could make the truth what he wanted….Idly his blood-colored optics glanced behind him at Charles. Sure, he knew him…but he doesn't know him now. He's dead. Smile. Perfect.

Perfect…that's how things would appear if any of the others went into the room now. The body and blood would be gone, and that spider plant would be hanging right back up…

Ciel was already sitting with his back against the stiff leather of his chair in his office upstairs by the time the servants stepped through the doors of the downstairs office. Of course had not used his private quarters to interview the butlers, but he would find himself there now, waiting to interview the demon. A small smirk played across his features as the absurdness of it all, and he felt unusually calm. If Ciel was a normal child, after seeing all he had seen in the past hour, he would be crying hysterically, but perhaps his heart had grown too cold for tears, and he was experienced now, desensitized to the horrific and frightful. He didn't even shiver. He hadn't trembled either as he walked up the wide staircase, because something had happened when that raven feather had been grasped in his fingers.

He knew what his move in this game would be.

So instead of panic, his strategy played clearly in his young mind as beneath him Meilin, Bard, Tanaka and Finnian burst in through the meeting room doors, only to find Sebastian there.

Footsteps…but not the ones he wanted to hear. Sebastian could tell they did not belong to his master, not a single set of them. Everything about Ciel Sebastian knew…he knew the way he walked, the way he smelled, the way he felt…but it was never enough. One may know the general history of their land, but it took extra to learn the exact details…

The servants of course, had millions of questions for him, but mostly they were overjoyed to see the life of the Manor back in his home. Meilin and Finnian rushed forward to embrace the butler at the same time, forgetting, if possible, the fact they had been tied up minutes ago. Meilin stumbled, and had to grab Sebastian's coat to steady herself, her face quickly becoming a deep shade of scarlet.

No matter how much he tried to reach up and slide his smiling mask over his face, his body was detached from his mind. Even as the others clutched him, his figure was just stiff. He had might as well be just as dead as Charles. Who was the one that really died in this room today?

No, Sebastian had died a long time ago…two years ago, when he had given Ciel his life, he had lost his…lost his to that child's.

All the words that Meilin and Finnian spoke sounded like muffles, like children trying to speak to one another underwater to see if they could hear anything. That's where they all were…underwater…only no one seemed to realize it but the demon. While everyone else had snorkels for air, he had nothing…he was drowning…his lungs collapsing upon themselves. His vision was slowly fading away with the lack of oxygen to his brain. He needed air…he had to get above to the surface…but they…they were holding him down…

Struggling…struggling for breath…Shaking his head, his hands finally moved as he pushed Meilin from off of him and Finnian away. Without even looking at them, the demon took hasty steps out the lower level office. 'Master…master…!' He repeated the word in his head. He care not about the others, only Ciel Phantomhive…maybe if he had succeeded in getting his mask on, things would be different…

Even though feet of water covered over the demon, he could still smell that boy…he knew where he was…Roughly he opened the door to the second office, a foot placed within as he stared at that chair…breathing heavily as if he had just ascended to the surface in reality…

Sebastian walked in, and Ciel's breath left his body. Despite all that had happened between them, and despite the fact he should fear and hate this creature, which was at once his savior and destroyer, Ciel's heart pounded in his chest. He was used to it now, this reaction to the other, but he cursed himself for it. Just the demon's smell...when he entered that office, it was pervaded with an exotic, alluring, subtle scent he couldn't even name...it drew him in, and it took all the boy had to keep his carefully built reserve.

Was this aroma how demons lured their prey? He didn't want to think about it. Instead, he spoke in his usual icy tone. "It's interesting, how the other servants were tied up outside the office, and yet Charles was in the room with me the whole time. Tanaka went out to get the tea and cake, and returned, so they couldn't have been tied up by Charles before he entered..." His dark eye fixed coldly on him, small fist clenching against his knee.

"It's in bad taste to play games that make me feel like throwing up, demon." He closed his eye, rushing on before the other could reply, "anyway, I asked you here because I still have many questions. Questions that require more than a yes or no answer from you. " His hand moved to idly brush his hand over his ring, taking strength from the power of his legacy, "You are not inclined to answer, but ..." His dark blue eye slowly opened fixing on the other, "perhaps there are questions you have to ask me as well."

The child took a deep breath, letting a silence hand in the air, gritting his teeth slightly before speaking that called upon his acting talent. He gave the demon the dim yet charming smile he often gave his guests, "I would like to ask you to stay here in my home with me, until we are both satisfied we have found the answers we were looking for."

What was with this? Here the once loyal subject fired the arrow from the ground to the castle in hopes of bringing the king down, but when the loyal subject came to check upon his work, the king was still sitting at his thorn…strong and seemingly untouched even though it was clear he had penetrated him with the weapon…was the king's heart really made of stone? Or…had he just shot too many arrows into him that the king was used to the feeling by now that he didn't even notice it…

Blue met with red as the two of them exchanged in looking at one another again…that's all it was though, looking. One of them, Sebastian, yearned for touch as well. All this effort, everything he was doing, seemed to be failing in getting what the wanted.

A look of ache easily shifted to scorn at the start of the Earl's words. Sebastian's shoulders tensed as their look continued and he narrowed his eyes. Was it really that interesting? This situation. He kept silent the whole while, waiting for Ciel to get done speaking for a moment so that he knew what ammo he truly needed to fight back. There was something then, a single word that caused for Sebastian's face to change a final time: Being addressed as 'demon.' Why did that get to him so suddenly?

His blood ran cold through his veins, and even clenching fists did not help to warm the tips of his fingers up. Then…their path of sight was broken as the king closed his eyes…Oh what power did this king have? That of a God? Could he shift the earth from below him? Because…that's what it surely felt like as Sebastian heard what was to come next…Ciel…wanted him to stay with him again…?

The clenched hands unfolded and eyes widened. Could this be a trap? "Then…does that mean…you want to reinstate the contract?" He walked close to the front of the desk.

Hesitantly, his hands pressed against the top as he slowly leaned himself forward. "Have I not told you…I've been…keeping my eye on you…Mister Charles…knocked you out, how do you know he did not leave the room while you were sleeping?" He frowned, looking serious.

Ciel looked at Sebastian, who was now closer, and the child actually trembled from the effort it took to keep from touching him. He ignored the comment about Charles, the way he was trying to ignore the pounding in his chest. Fingers folded against his mouth and he gave the butler a long dark look. Months without feeling anything, only to have this demonic creature re-enter his life with his entourage of death and destruction, and once again his body, his heart, reacted. Ciel cursed inwardly, fighting to push them away.

He wouldn't get lost in Wonderland again.

Pushing his thoughts aside, the young Earl shook his head once, moving his hand from his mouth. "No... I have not said anything about the contract." His eyes lowered for a moment, "I have thought about it...." His elegant brow furrows, "But there are things I need to know, first. " _Things I need to try._

He gave him a small smile, "I need to get used to the idea of losing my soul again."

Once again Ciel looked up, "Today is Friday. Stay here until Sunday, as my butler. Let us get re-acquainted...and, should you still want to restore the contract, I will give you my answer by Sunday."

With a deep breath and extended his hand towards the other, Ciel offered a handshake. His lips gave a strange, adult smile that didn't fit his face. "So will you form a human contract with me, demon? Will you agree to stay here, and wait for my answer on Sunday?" _I am going to test you, demon, and find out what you really...want._

Maybe, just for a second, there was a hint of the thirst of the heart in Ciel's eyes that Sebastian saw…or maybe…it was just his imagination. The darkness of pain and loneliness all too soon covered any sort of warm passion up. The only sort of passion that now showed was that for power and control…yes, that was the Ciel Sebastian knew…and the Ciel he had fallen for…but yet, not the Ciel he wanted right now…He wanted a boy who would not only give him his eye…but his heart too…and yet, was that fair when the raven didn't have a heart to give in return?

Did Sebastian still believe he lacked such a soul and affection after this all? That word was said then—no. The tips of his fingers twitched some as he stood back up straight as if now only realizing how close he was to the child. This position like this, practically on top on his desk and begging…it was disgraceful. Slowly he stood up straight, taking a single step away as he listened to him. He knew the contract was not mentioned, and that 'no' was going to be the answer…but the demon was the one acting like the child then in his aspiring of what was not really there…

"You don't need to lose your soul again, I just want to—" Be with you. He bit is tongue, not on purpose. It was like the inner demon in him, his fangs, attacked what he was becoming. The devil had to remind this demon that he was a demon, and nothing more…or more so, less.

Sebastian swallowed hard, hands once again forming fists—tightly. His head turned to the side as he stared at nothing in particular, but not the Earl…There was anger in his eyes, but anger at himself only for feeling like some sort of piece of paper that was being folded incorrectly…

Three days…he would have three days with this manifestation of love…love, it taking the physical form of a 12-year-old boy…dare he accept the offer? The demon felt so weak right now…as if he was the lower one in the room. It now came down to what he wanted rather than what the human wanted…and he was the one on trial. The other creatures of Hell would be laughing at him right now.

Still, throughout all those thoughts, this burning desire of Ceil Phantomhive was just too strong. It outweighed any other compromise…"Yes…" He said in an icy manner, turning his head back to see the offering handshake. His own hand inched forward, fingers wrapping around the smaller one. Again…he was addressed as demon…the word reminding him of what he was, and more so…the detachment the title was from 'Sebastian'…that name that Ciel once gave him and called out to him… "I will be your butler until Sunday…I will do as you wish." He closed his eyes then, felling like his will had just been broken.

Ciel's lips formed a dark smile, his eye fixed on Sebastian's face as he agreed to his terms. The players were ready; the rules were laid out. The child that lived somewhere deep within his shadows felt a small thrill at the prospect of a new game laid out in front of him. But, it was nothing compared to the thrill he felt next.

Sebastian touched him, he watched, as that large hand fit against his. It was electric; it was fire. Something occurred in his knees that startled the boy: They became weak.

'Sebastian's hand... ' Ciel let his fingers brush the other's slightly, very slightly. They felt rough, and yet not too rough, and also soft at the same time, but not too soft. They felt, to Ciel's chagrin, perfect, like everything else about the physicality of the demon.

This was the hand that had created the curry doughnut, that had protected him so many times...undressed him, bathed him, baked sweets, fought a shinigami. This was the hand that had brutally killed that boy in the stables, that had ripped off his clothes in the coffee shop, that had melted into nothingness when the demon revealed his true form. This hand...a double-edged sword. It could protect him in one minute, and then stab him the next.

That dark cloud that floated within Ciel's eyes invited Sebastian in. It invited him into its land where it rained down upon and drowned the earth constantly. Sebastian reached into that darkness, and what reached back? Their hands connected. His fingers tingled as they touched the boy's milky flesh. It was a secret he would keep to himself. The sensation traveled from his hand through the rest of his body. Sebastian felt like nothing more than a light switch that had stayed off and dusty until this boy had clicked him on.

The demon was yelling at him in his head…or was it the love? This was not a good sign when he could not tell the difference between the two, 'Hold him like this. Never let go.' The voice said.

And then…this light bulb that was now turned on was being unscrewed from its body. Those tender fingers stroked against his hand, causing for Sebastian fell as if he were spinning in circles. Why…why was Ciel touching him like this? Could it be…but the internal monologue was interrupted in his head as that hand finally pulled back and those words were spoken.

Touch... The Earl was usually so averse to it, and yet now he didn't want anything but to touch. A flicker of confusion on his face, wiped away when Ciel suddenly realized he had been holding it too long, without moving. He flushed slightly and gave it a quick shake, before releasing it, letting his own fingers drop to his side, eyes moving to look at a painting on the wall. "It's a deal." There was an pause, "I am tired, so I will go to sleep... But first....I have a letter from her Majesty to open." Ciel's back was straight, and fixing his face into its usual stoic expression, he took his sharp letter opener and held the blade to the paper.

Sebastian's breathing had become fast and ridged from that simple contact alone, and it took a lot of effort to appear as normal now…

"Shall I…get ready your bed…?" He questioned with a lifted brow, mentally frowning that these three days were now so quickly being cut down to two with the boy's desire to slumber…maybe that would be for the best though…however…

However….

A letter from the queen…what importance of it that it had to be taken care of now compared to the millions of other ones she sent? Sebastian only gave a stiff nod as he watched the young one…

The boy slowly opened the letter, placing his finger just so on the envelope in a way that the knife would slice his skin. He winced as his finger was cut, purposefully cutting deeper than the circumstances accounted for. He cried out, perhaps a bit too loudly. The blood poured out onto the letter, and then held his finger up. Eyes slid to the demon and he waited.

There was no longer the demonic contract that said he had to protect him, to nurture him. Demons surely, thirsted blood.

The sight of the nail opener glimmered within the light…but not for long. It's shine was soon covered in blood—Ciel's blood.

All of Sebastian's body became taut…he felt each nerve electrify in want. And…that noise…that noise that the boy had made when he cut himself…

Crimson eyes were wide and his lips were parted. His mouth water…he could smell that blood so clearly…that blood that he wanted and craved since day one… "Ah…"He made a noise in a hot breath as his ruby eyes shot from the finger being held up and to Ceil's face…was that digit…being displayed to him? Surely Ciel was expecting him to go get a bandaged for him….? Or was he simply taunting him?

Silence traveled between them. It was taking Sebastian's all to hold back the monster within himself. He knew for sure that this was a test…he knew for sure what he should do…and he knew for sure what he wanted to do…

Ciel kept his thoughts to himself, not revealing them. His uncovered eye watched the demon carefully, every detail of his face. He noticed the way the creature's crimson eyes glazed over at the smell and sight of his blood, how his shoulders tensed and that hot breath escaped his slightly curled lips. The boy's own heartbeat had risen slightly, and he could feel it pulsing against his finger. Goosebumps formed on his flesh. The tension in his office was palpable.

Here was the lion, unchained, facing the tamer.

Where the butler knew he should fetch a bandage, the demon desired otherwise…He stood there, staring at that delicious red liquid running down that slender finger.

They say…once a dog has a taste of blood, it will go mad. It will do anything it can to have more until it kills someone to get it…Sebastian had tasted blood before, but never the forbidden fruit that was Ceil…

No, he could not ruin his chance to win this game…and yet…before he knew it, his lips were around that finger. It was like the consciences of decision-making had left him.

There he was, on his knees in front of that chair, with his hands wrapped firmly around the boy's wrist and his mouth over that red-colored digit.

With eyes closed, he wrapped his tongue around it, salivating deeply as he greedily took in the flavor. He had never tasted anything so good in his long life. "Mmmnh~~ Master." He moaned against him, not letting go as he sucked inward, trying to selfishly draw even more blood from the sliced flesh.

Outwardly, Ciel showed nothing. He only sat like a stone statue, with a dead blue gaze, stinging finger upheld in the air as the blood trickled down his hand slowly.

And then, the lion attacked.

It happened so fast. The boy's eye widened and he made a move to wrench his hand away, but then the butler's hot, perfect mouth met with his flesh, and Ciel wasn't prepared for his reaction.

The demon's tongue brushing against the sensitive skin of his finger caused electricity to travel up his spine, and his knees trembled slightly at the foreign sensation. His mind screamed at him, demanded his denial to touch. It told him to push the spider away, but then Sebastian began to suck against the cut harder, and Ciel found himself leaning back against the chair, all thoughts fleeing. The devil's moan fell against his ears, making his body shiver.

His eye hooded, plush lips parted and from them fell a single, almost inaudible whimper.

How many times? How many times had to been a game of touch and go? The slap of a hand had almost become part of the ritual and routine that had once been a part of both the demon and human's lives. Even the slight touch that showed a small single hint of a passionate desire from Sebastian would earn him a slap or push away.

This though? This was not their ritual. This was not their routine right now. Things had gotten so pushed out of line, and parts were missing…mostly that pink rose that rested within Ciel's eye and took on the form of a contract…

Just as that was gone, so was that normal hit the butler received. This was…a new cup of tea. How good the flavor was, too. It had a sweet aroma, which perfectly matched the taste. It gave Sebastian a shivering burn from head to toe.

Ciel Phantomhive's blood: A drug. An intoxication. A wine. An elixir in the Holy Grail. But ah, was a demon allowed to touch his lips upon something so sacred? The grail would decide that…Instead of dissolving his lips like acid, it invited him in more.

Being so physically close to the other, Sebastian could feel those diminutive legs tremble from his contact. A smile formed around the digit as he still kept it within his tongue's touch. He wanted more. He needed more. Carefully he shifted the hand upward a bit, idly wiping his tongue down the fingertip, around the boy's palm in a circular motion, and then back up to dip it between the wounded finger and the next.

That noise that came from Ciel…it was so…arousing. Sebastian didn't know what it was…the sound alone, or the knowledge that it was his doing that had caused for the young one to make such a statement. He wanted to hear more.

What were these feelings? What game was this that they were playing? It was like nothing the young Earl had experienced before... It felt so good: Sebastian's tongue, licking, touching the skin of his hand in a way it had never been touched. It startled him, made his breath catch in his throat, and his face flush. The boy turned his burning cheek to the side, away. He bit his lip to keep any further sounds form escaping.

The tamer could never show weakness to the lion.

Diligently but roughly the servant's lips sucked between the boy's fingers only for his tongue to slide back upwards along the sliced skin. There was no more blood to be had though. That didn't seem to matter to the demon, now his gluttony was just for the simplest taste of Ciel himself. He would take all that he could get until he was literally pushed back.

That awaited slap…it wasn't happening yet…Maybe Sebastian would have thought somewhere in his head, questioned as to why his king was not retreating, but his own mind was shot. He could not see clearly. The dog had his first taste of blood, and now it was mad as the story went…

And it felt so wrong, it was wrong. This was a demon! A creature from Hell that only wanted to satiate his desire. The wet trail of his saliva felt like it was burning Ciel, and his fingers trembled. He fixed his gaze on a vase, fighting his eyelids, which wanted to close. He cursed Sebastian, he cursed the way he pulled him into his web like a magnet, ensnared him, and he cursed himself for allowing himself to be ensnared...for strangely and inexplicably wanting it...wanting more just as well... 'What is wrong with me? I am Ciel Phantomhive...and I am losing my own game!' He had wanted to test Sebastian, and the other had failed. Ciel had failed himself, because allowing another to touch him was failing. The King's walls should be, had to be, inaccessible.

So, he abruptly snatched his hand away, and jerked his head around quickly. His fingers curled around his cut, and he looked at the other, intensely, his blue eye darker, if possible, than normal. He couldn't trust himself to speak then, and a shadow passed over his childish face.

Ciel was to Sebastian was opium was to a drug addict. Having him within him was the ultimate high. It was such an erotic taste and sensation that this blood was giving to him that it was the ultimate desire of sin. It was already to the stage where Sebastian needed more to satisfy the craving. This was only a small appetizer, and he hungered for the whole meal.

It did come to an end, however. That bone was taken away from the dog. With much effort, Sebastian opened his eyes to look at his master staring down at him. As the color in the boy's optical pools may have deepened with having something unknown added to his soul, Sebastian's own eyes were not the same himself. Something was missing from them, but something was added to them as well. It was not his normal look.

Then, that shadow passed across the other…and that normal smile Sebastian had appeared on him; moreover, it was not a mask this time around.

Nothing was said. And, what should have been some long moments of still silence was but not even a second. The demon wasn't done.

Sebastian pulled himself up a bit, one hand gripping around the back of the chair. He leaned himself down where his slightly red coated lips caressed along the younger's neck. His other hand traveled down Ciel's chest, though it just barely touched against him as if he were a treasure that the hunter knew he was not supposed to touch and yet he couldn't resist.

'Don't touch me.' Ciel wanted to say it, scream it. But as he watched the demons face, the only thing that fell from his parted lips was the name he had given this spider who would destroy him, "Sebastian..." He tensed and his fists clenched against his knees as the other drew closer, and then...he flinched slightly as the others mouth found the curve of his neck... expecting those teeth to sink into his flesh, for the spider to bite and consume him then and there.

'_Don't touch me_.' Those lips on his neck, when did they become the only thing in existence in the world? The minute they made contact. Everything else was fading, his mind was fading, his warped innocence was fading, his resistance was fading, and fast.

'_Don't...'_

Something happened to Ciel. The greedy child within him awoke, awoke along with feelings he didn't understand. The demon's fingers ghosted against his chest, in a touch so different than the touch of a butler. His eye closed.

Ciel felt like he kept tripping over the same stone, that no matter what he did or what he tried to do, he would find himself in Sebastian's arms again and again, in his dreams, in his nightmares, at the coffee shop, and in his bedroom. How could he escape this demon?

Did he want to escape?

Right now, all he wanted was to feel.

'_Touch me. Touch me. Touch me.'_

This…wasn't a dream, was it? Always had this devil wanted to touch, feel, and kiss this boy…but yet he was never allowed to. Now…it was like there was nothing in his way that was stopping him. Any sort of questioning emotions that may have made Sebastian rage, or may have made him place down his butler badge and feather duster was no longer in place. Everything was left outside in the streets of London when he had become astray.

What about Ciel though? Why was he allowing him to get away with this? Was this part of that…test?

Hell, who cared—It had been the demon's way to make sure he did everything perfect, flawless, but now he suddenly didn't care how much of a screw up this would turn out to be as long as he had the Earl within his grasp…that is, for now. Only the Gods knew what would happen later. Only the Gods knew how much Sebastian would regret these actions later…

With each kiss he placed down on that soft neck, it felt like he was playing with fire. It was like a flame of a red-hot candle was touching against his lips each time he quietly smacked his them against the other's flesh.

Once he had reached the lining of the boy's clothes, Sebastian directed himself upward again, retracing the path his lips had just made but with his tongue now.

His hand pressed firmer against those expensive clothes that the boy wore…so many times had he felt them in the past, but never like this. His bare hand continued to slide south of his body, his palm grazing along him. Fingers found those boots where they almost instinctively webbed within the laces. He pulled them free without effort, one leg and then the other.

The Earl bit his lip to suppress the sounds that were clawing at his throat as the demon's hand roamed down his body, which tensed, objecting to the touch, then quivered, longing for it. His neck tilted slightly, involuntarily, as Sebastian's mouth pressed kisses against the tender skin. He shivered, feeling the demons tongue glide against his skin. He was barely conscious of the fact the other had removed his boots, barely conscious of how his hand had lifted to bury his jeweled fingers into the soft, inky tresses of the demon...his mind was drifting in lazy awareness... Kisses. Affection.

There, on the floor, laid those long boots with along with the dropped awareness…recognition, decision making…along with hesitation, paranoia, and that fear of a demon and human's forbidden love that acted as a forceful wall to the both of them for so long…

There should no longer have been a question if this was love or lust. Sebastian had found his answer to that a long time ago, now it was just a matter of accepting the answer…He just wanted to touch Ciel, to indulge in him, to make the boy feel something in his life for once…to make him feel something that was given from him…and him alone.

He sniffed in lightly, taking every aspect he could for this. How wonderful the child smile, and how good he felt. His hand now roamed against his legs, upward, and back over his chest then down again.

' Lizzie.' Her face was in Ciel's mind, his fiancée. Ciel's eye opened, hazily fixing on the ceiling. What would his cousin say if she saw him like this? In the hands of a demon... Ciel Phantomhive, allowing himself to be touched, licked, by the creature who he no longer controlled, who could tear him to shreds. Master and servant. How inappropriate... Somewhere in his fogged mind, he remembered that this demon had claimed he loved him. Somewhere in his icicle heart, he knew he loved this demon...how very inappropriate...

The child inside him, the human, longed to be touched, but the Earl...the Phantomhive knew, this couldn't go on. "Stop." The word fell from his lips in a whisper, as his fingers curled tightly around the demon's hair and he pulled, attempting to move the other's mouth from him.

Was it his imagination, or did he receive a touch back? Those tiny fingers just barely waved through his bangs. It made the demon's fake heart skip a beat. He purred softly within his throat and never released his mouth from Ciel. His lips skimmed along that small jaw line, his mouth so close to the other's…He did not stop when told to the first time. It was like he had not even heard it.

The boy's eye flashed blue, and he took a shuddering breath, attempting to make his voice sound more authoritative, "Stop!"

As Sebastian's lips remained just half an inch away from the human's, his hand started to pop the buttons of the boy's top, one-by-one.

Then…this surely wasn't his imagination, because he could surely feel those digits within his hair now…pushing at him, killing him, and that breath that suddenly felt so cold being thrown at him in that single word repeated once more—stop.

How could he ignore something with so much passion in it? He stopped. His hands dropped at his sides and he stood back.

Now…here was that long awaited moment of silence and stillness…Sebastian looked at Ciel…the red in his eyes not blood as it often were, but rather roses with broken pedals. "I was….I was…just getting you ready for bed." He said, the Gods laughing at him

Ciel looked at Sebastian, in his usual cold, stoic manner, lips pursing slightly. The only difference in the face that had looked to his butler so many times before, the only thing to reveal the traces of emotion and sensation were his cheeks, which were flushed a tint of rose.

Inside, the look the other gave him startled the boy. The look in the demon's eyes...Ciel stared into those eyes, taking in that gaze. His fingers tightened into a fist and he stood up in a swift, graceful movement that revealed his aristocratic blood. The boy walked towards the door of the room, in his stocking feet, which glided past the boots that lay on the floor. He didn't even look back as he called out in his usual cold voice, "Don't follow me. When all the other servants are asleep, go to my room. That's an order." He shut the door behind him and walked to his room, his hand coming up to press his index and middle finger to the skin between his eyebrows, which were furrowed.

In the past, this demon had held Ciel Phantomhive's eyes in his hand…but now he held the boy's eye in his own eyes as well. The two of them looked at one another, not one centimeter, not one flinch went undetected by Sebastian's visual pool. He noticed everything. He read Ciel like a book, but even so…the pages were stuck together, it being difficult to absorb the content…What had he just spilt on those pages though? Was it a bit of the red wine he had been drinking? It doused the pages, turning the flesh color a bit of pink. Ciel was…blushing?

The warmth that may have been upon his cheeks did not reflect within the Earl's tone though. That was just it, however…it was the Earl speaking to him and not Ciel. Sebastian, at first, thought he had lost the boy somewhere within those pages when he was told not to follow him, but the story took a turn for a surprise arch by the time that sentence was done.

The temporary butler's face was dry and impassive, but a curious hint of the newly born human emotion played upon him by the time the boy had walked out. "Yes…my lord." Sebastian answered in his usual sober manner as much as his soul within this fake body was aloof. It did not feel right seeing the young master walk barefoot on the floor…so improper…and yet, it was his fault. Had he failed this test as a butler? Was Ciel going to scold him later about 'getting him ready for bed' in the office? What a mess up he was becoming…if that was the case, why didn't he just yell at him now to get it over with? That should not have been a question, because Sebastian knew why. This was a game they were playing; after all…it could be a question as to which game they were now engaging in. What started out as Poker could have very well been Go Fish by now.

Ciel's eye closed as he stopped in the hall for one brief moment. He could feel his heart racing underneath his partially opened shirt, and his lips formed a deep frown... he ignored his pulse as he continued then into his chamber.

He then moved to the mirror in his room and looked at his reflection. The candlelight played in eerie glow against his face, making his eye look almost black. It was here, alone, that his cold stone face changed, his mask falling. Looking back at him in that mirror was a confused, frightened, excited, and yet repulsed Ciel Phantomhive. His hand came up to trace his neck and jaw line where Sebastian's lips had brushed. The skin burned, a trail of fire was marked on his skin, and he once more found his hand trembling. His cheeks flushed as he remembered the feel of those lips, the demons smell...his hot breath... it made the boy quiver.

Ciel was not a child, and yet he was a child. He was not innocent to what the demon wanted. He had seen it in the stables, and when he had been captured, used as a pet... a shudder traversed his spine and yet he remained glued to the mirror. He knew exactly what the demon wanted. And he was beginning to understand, that he wanted it as well. That a part of him, a part that was threatening to overpower every other part, wanted to be Sebastian's. A part of him wanted to be consumed by the spider, like the boy in the stables. Now the question was, how to fight this part of him?

How do you fight off a demon? A demon...Sebastian...how had he looked at him, just now. It was different then how he had looked at the stable victim. His touch, it was... the look in his eyes, was soft, like the way Lizzie looked at him, or his mother, it held something more, something that he once had felt and seen many times before his world crumbled--affection.

Was it love or lust? Was it right or left, in this maze? Which would lead him to his salvation, which to his disaster?

He turned from the mirror to then sit on the edge of the bed, waiting. The child idly noticed that his breathing was irregular. His body, it was as if it belonged to Sebastian. He had his soul, his useless soul back, but now his body, he couldn't seem to control it. It was as if every cell longed for the other, every sensation was heightened. The beating of his heart...his breath...it waited.


	12. Fall to Heaven

Ciel was gone, and for a second Sebastian stared at those boots upon the floor. He slowly picked them up and set them in the closet, out of sight…Due to habit he reached into his pocket for his watch, but without feeling anything, '…Oh, that's right, I'm no longer the official Phantomhive butler…'

The moments ticked away. Ciel did not leave the demon's mind for a split second. He could hear the servants questioning among themselves what was wrong with Sebastian even though they were rooms away. They all wondered what he was doing there and if he was back working with them or not. Most of all, they wondered about his cleaning.

He couldn't focus on it…his movements were slow compared to normal, and he adjusted the same glass Indian Elephant on a shelf countless time. With each attempt to straight it out Sebastian felt apprehension about breaking the small thing… 'What if my hands are too rough…how thin is this glass? Maybe I shouldn't just be touching it at all…Look, this is from India, not England…' Of course…it really wasn't about an elephant at all…

Then, suddenly, the voices outside of his head stopped…it was quiet within the house…The other servants were now sleeping, just as they had been sleeping before…only now…it was natural.

Knock, knock on the door. "Master…?" Sebastian said as if he were bringing the boy a midday sweet. Having permission to enter from before, he stepped inside and closed the door behind him…

The Earl didn't look at Sebastian as he entered his room; his ocean gaze was fixed on the oil lamp by his bedside table. But he sensed him, even before he spoke. He could smell, him, that exotic demonic smell. Despite himself, he took a deep breath, letting it fill his small lungs. He almost closed his eye at the feeling that the smell brought to his body. It was intoxicating. It reminded him a bit of the incense that Agni had brought form India, only muskier.

Ciel was clothed exactly how the other had left him: his shirt slightly unbuttoned, silk bowtie loosened, slender legs covered only by stalkings, legs hanging over the edge of the bed. His black hair slightly tousled, wilder than usual. He had the look of the tamer after barely dodging an attack form the lion. Now he was preparing to fight back.

He wanted answers from Sebastian. He wanted to know which way to step, where the rabbit hole was hidden so he wouldn't fall. He wanted to know the truth. He was a child of planning, of analyzing, but he was also a child of impulse. What he was going to do now was impulse. There were times when, to find the answer to the mystery, you had to fling yourself at that mystery, and let it envelop you so you could find the missing piece, by becoming a piece yourself.

He continued to gaze at the candle, "Sebastian...you desire me..." His head turned around to give the demon a blank stare. "That is why you returned, am I correct?"

This was the cave that entered into the world's end…and beyond that was Hell…but, wasn't Hell that place the demon had been so accustomed to? There should have been a sign above the Earl's door that said "All ye abandon hope who enter here." Was hope…really lost in this place, or was it to be found?

The room was dimly lit, and even though Sebastian had stood in here before, it felt like he didn't know his surroundings. His feet felt heavy against the floor in which he stood on. His eyes laid upon the young king of this world and his heart throbbed heavily…what a strange sensation…even though he had this human body for some years now, this was the first time he had ever been so aware of it…so much aware of…the way it felt.

Ciel's looked remained in the beautiful disaster he left him in. It made sense though…because it was the butler's job the dress and disrobe the head of the house. Still…he looked ever so enticing. In a sluggish manner, his eyes drifted to the boy's hand as he eyed that finger which had been cut even though it was no longer dressed in red. It was like he was a dog, begging its master for the delicious table scraps that it could not have.

This downward gaze at once shot back upward at the short but potent words that were said. For a second the demon's face gained extra color only for it to drain of any pigment at all. Lips were parted as words ached to fall from his tongue, yet his voice ran silent.

The raven swallowed harshly, closing his eyes as he tilted his head down. "Yes. You are correct." His voice was assertive…it felt like he was going to die in a second, to be murdered, and the murdered was asking him for any last words. "That is why…I came back. I love…you." He clenched his fists at his sides, speaking that statement for the second time in his life. His head jerked to the side in self-bitterness all over again, the reality gnawing at him once again.

Ciel watched the other, the way those words fell from his lips, from his bowed head, as though he hated them. 'I love you'. Once again, he felt that rush of something in his stomach, felt his icicle heart beat faster, melt, and burn.

He felt the walls crashing down, he felt like he was drowning, drowning in emotions he didn't understand, or that he had forgotten to understand. He parted his lips, he wanted to scream them at him, but the water filled his lungs, choking him.

He buried his fingers in his hair, shoulders hunching slightly, as if battling the waves of water, of emotions he felt.

He shook his head, several times, eye closed, a look of anguish on his face. He was not allowing himself to believe it. Because when a flower has been without the sun for so long, it withers, it becomes dry. And then, when the sun returns, it only withers more, and shies from it, longing once more for its darkness," How can that be?"

He wanted to recall Lizzie's face now, but it was impossible. All he could feel, all he could see, all he could smell and taste at that moment, was Sebastian. The lion had bitten him, and his fangs were poison. Poison that made him only want more poison. The child turned his face to the demon, lowering his hands form his hair, and crossed the distance between them and reached up, curling his fingers around the other's shirt, pulling at it, his voice harsh and cold , "Admit it…you just want to consume my soul, you just want to do to me what you did to that boy in the stables! Admit it! Don't lie to me...."

Those words he just spoke burned his mouth. It was like an idea became physical on the form of acid…and yet…such a siring pain and burning like this that one would naturally avoid, Sebastian couldn't. He was drawn to those words, and he couldn't keep them from not being exposed even though it hurt him, in more ways than one.

It hurt his demon pride. It hurt the way he watched Ciel's reaction. It hurt the way he was convicted. It hurt the way that the first thing in his existence that made him actually feel like he existed, was being ripped ad torn apart. But, it was his own fault. He had made one mistake…and that was the mistake of being caught with that nameless boy from the stables. No, it probably dated back to before that. The mistake was engaging in this contract in the first place.

Even though he was grasped, Sebastian kept his gaze adverted. 'Admit it' Ciel said twice. The devil's lip cringed, twitching from nerve. Finally, when that word 'lie' was said, Sebastian snapped his head back to stare at the other, "No!" He said with flame to his eyes. "The only one who's lying is you, Ciel Phantomhive!" He stood up straight, his previous oppressive composure being taken over by the unyielding demon force within him. "Why don't you admit it to me…" This was no way for a servant to speak to his master, but this wasn't the first time Sebastian had tested Ciel. "I can smell your truth, young master~" His eyes narrowed, a small smirk trying to find its way back to the butler's face.

The hands on Sebastian's shirt slipped off to hang limp at his sides, then they clenched into small fists as the demon's words fell against his ears. He felt slight fear against the pit of his stomach at the look in the other's eyes. Ciel never forgot that this was a demon, and that he could be ripped to shreds at any moment...

Despite this fear, he narrowed his eye, his chin jerking up, the childish pride and strength that had once made him form a contract with a demon showing itself. His breath was quick, his blue orb was sparkling with sudden rage, but rage at what? Rage at the demon for speaking to him in such a manner? Rage at his feelings? At this absurd situation? This tiresome game they were playing? Or...rage at being caught? At being forced to come face to face with his feelings?

Yes, looking at the demon now, at that perfect face, features accentuated by the demon's anger, and feeling his fingers burning to touch that face, Ciel couldn't deny to himself that he loved him. But Ciel also wanted to alienate himself, to push the demon away. The human, the child in him lost, the earl was quickly winning. It was his turn to lie.

The words fell out of his mouth rapidly, and he was almost yelling, "Shut up! There is nothing to admit, nothing."

How many monsters, angels, and other demons had Leonard fought? Humans were supposed to be the easiest targets, and yet he was losing to one? Or was it that he was simply losing to himself? Both Ciel and Sebastian were facing the same struggle. How much more substance could be thrown into the pot before everything just boiled over? What a horrible soup this was making…it was overcooking.

Then, perhaps at that moment Sebastian felt those hands fall away from him more than when they tugged at him. The muscles in his face contorted as the trying smile was lost. He was told to shut up and that there was nothing to admit…that this was nothing? The shadow that had previous found its home upon Ciel's face now moved to Sebastian's. He stood there, stiff. The fire and ice tried to dominate one another. Finally, something in-between, water, was used as the secret weapon for the fire.

Yes, Sebastian did as he was told…he shut up, but the command was never given for how long… "I see…then, if there is nothing…why did you tell me to come to your room?" He said, the shadow still lurking over his expression. "Was it just to have this argument with me, to come to the conclusion that there is nothing?" He moved himself closer so that his knees touched and pressed against the smaller one's that hung off the bedside. "Was it simply to change you?" He reached a hand out without invitation and perfectly popped the last remaining buttons of the clothing, "Or…" Another pause…another 'shut up.' "Was it…because of this…?" Then, without another word, the demon so perfectly leaned himself over so that he could be at the Earl's range and went to push his human lips against the other's with rigorous and sultry desire. A kiss that would be much different then any he had given before…to anyone, to Ciel, to time…

In the past, whenever Ciel was dressed or undressed by the butler, he remained perfectly still, like a mannequin, the only movement being his soft breathing, to allow the other to undress him swiftly, perfectly, to avoid the unnecessary brushing of fingers against skin that might occur if he moved. Now, he was being undressed by the man-demon before him, but with a whole different intent.

Yet, his reaction was the same.

He became a stiff, frozen doll as the other pressed his strong legs against his knees. He didn't move, his lips remained pressed into a thin line, and his hands that pushed against the expensive silk bed sheets didn't budge.

Outwardly, the boy looked almost dead, but inwardly…he came alive. His heart began pounding with the Sebastian's nearness, skipped when those skilled fingers popped the remaining buttons of his shirt. A wave of surprise, of excitement passed through his body, a battle began. The Earl, the child, the man, the boy, duty, want, fear, and daring, all fought for dominance in his mind. In his heart, the curious, ice cat just wanted to play with the fire before him.

Still, he didn't move. He didn't dare move. He was afraid of what he might do, what the other was doing. Ciel could feel the butler's breath on his statue face. The demon's smell invaded him. He was barely aware that those lips were parting in speech. But he had stopped listening the minute the other had touched him. Then, the touching continued. The devil's perfect lips met his…

The statue came alive. His eyelid closed immediately. He felt himself weakening. His small chest instinctively leaned just slightly closer to the other's. Sebastian's lips burned him, and yet he wanted to drink from them. "Demon…," His voice was barely a whisper against the others lips, and he felt their mouths brushed against each other in his final plea, "what do you want from me?"

The reaction of his master was everything. The moment the demon had made the decision to touch his lips against his, was the moment that he knew he was taking part in a game that was dangerous. It would be a game where he would lose his consciences and give into a desire…and yet, he stepping into the playing field with a desperate attempt to know his game plan…how could one have a game plan in this competition though if they were no longer being controlled by their own will?

Sebastian wanted so hard to win this. He wanted so hard to pay attention to his master's needs and wants, but his own needs and wants were taking over the other's…what were they though? Were they the same as one another's? He could feel just how frozen and without animation the boy was at first, but there was something that broke all that…no, it wasn't his imagination…he knew it…it felt too hot to be just inside his head…the boy had leaned close to him, just a little…when he had captured his lips.

And this…this enslavement of Ciel's lips, was what Sebastian truly wanted…his mouth cupped around his, moister from within staining Ciel's lips and all around them as he hungrily took them. Yes, this was how he had wanted to kiss him, how he had wanted to give himself to him, all this time…not like those other oral caresses that barely touched him…

His own eyes had fallen closed as he pressed against the boy more. It was not something hat was violent, but rather something strongly sensual. Then, between his lip's subjection, a question was given to him…that question…that question that had been in his own head since the start of this all… 'I want to consume your soul? No, I want you. Yet…I want to still be a demon…I want you…I want to kiss you…I want to hold you…I want to touch you…I want to have you…I want you to want me…I want you to…' The list just went on…

The demon was kissing him more with each 'want' that went through his head. His damp lips traveled from the other's mouth to all around his face, to his neck, to his ear, then down his collarbone. By this time he had pushed himself completely against the boy so that it would cause for Ciel to be on his back on the bed with the butler against him, between his legs, and over him. Somewhere, in the admits of it all, he answered him within his steamy breath. "I want you….to call me…Sebastian…" Was all that he said, all that he could manage to say…

Ciel fell back against the bed, his bangs sweeping against his forehead, black hair fanned slightly, contrasting with the white silken sheets his back lay on. His body quivered as it made a home for the other between his trembling legs, he slid his knees up so his feet were on the bed, and his fingers dug slightly into the mattress with each kiss that was placed on him, burning him, caressing his will and claiming it. He was losing his mind. He was a marionette, his strings being pulled with each touch, touches that felt so good against his deprived skin.

He had never willingly been this close to anyone, physically. But his body didn't belong to him then, it belonged to the other. Sebastian moved, and Ciel instinctively moved with him. His chest began to rise and fall, his breath quickening, echoing against the walls of the candle lit room, and he flushed, embarrassed by his display of reaction, but unable to do anything about it.

The icicle cat was captured by the fire, entranced by it, wanting to gaze at it, to contemplate the flames, to feel them, and taste them even as they melted his skin.

Sebastian's velvet voice floated over him and he barely registered what he said. The child moved his plush mouth to the others ear, his icy voice a breathy whisper against the shell of the demon's ear, assenting to his request, "Sebastian…" and then, his small, pink tongue gave a tentative lick of the other's lobe. He felt the taste of him go through him. It was like his smell, exotic, alluring, and intoxicating. He wanted more. He licked it again, letting his tongue drag slowly against the small amount of skin. Somewhere in the back of his fogged mind he remembered the way he had felt when he first tried one of Sebastian's sweets, he had never tasted anything so good, and just like he had devoured the dessert, he greedily wrapped his lips around the lobe.

Falling….deeper and deeper. Sebastian was falling deeper and deeper into this child. He was becoming engulfed in him and the sound of his body hitting the bottom of the pit was represented by the feathering shifting of the bedding. Never had landing felt so soft…

It felt good to be over Ciel like this, to have him under him. It was the demon's job to watch over him and to be protective of him, and now he felt like a parent wrapped around its egg.

The sounds of the other's breath depend, and Sebastian could feel that breathing from under him…he could feel it in so many ways. It was as that breath had been an adhesive. It grabbed onto him, melting him against him. It caused for him to mirror Ciel at that moment; his own breath becoming profound as each of their oxygen mixed together, lighting one another's candles at the same time.

As those petite feet anchored themselves upon the bed, Sebastian bucked himself forward just a bit to gain his own balance. His body scrapped softly against the smaller's within the motion, causing for him to visually quiver.

This was…the final move in this game then, what would it be? Ciel tilted his head, his cold breath speaking into his ear. That name he was given was said. 'Sebastian…'…He was not a demon, nor a human, but yet Sebastian…

His eyes remained closed, a sense of a calm midnight tide washing over him. "Mas…" He started to speak, the word cut in half as the ocean became heated at this midnight hour. That defectless soft tongue touched against him then…

His breath, which was just previously stuck in a deep state, completely stopped. A human had made the devil tense. His body withered against the other as his ear was licked, his hands dropping upon the mattress with parted fingers. "Hah—" His eyes closed tighter as his breath came back to him in an acute exhale and single moan. Without awareness his figure nudged against the other's more.

A forming arousal on setting upon Sebastian's boy due to their closeness. How easily his desire from under him drove him to this state…

Sensations: there was nothing more important in a game then sensations. The way the dice feels… telling the player to release, the way the game looks, the sound of the billiards ball cracking against another…sensations were everything in a game. This game was no different. They were being consumed by sensations.

He had always enthralled Ciel, Sebastian. The way he handled everything perfectly, the way he always seemed to have control. It was fascinating, trying to find a way to make a ripple in the serene, calm pool of his face. Now, he found he could make him elicit noised that were like silk to his ears by a simple lick, and he wanted to hear more un serene sounds, to make waves.

He moved his lips from the demon's ear and pressed them to his neck, grazing them down to where the lining of his clothes began, his tongue coming to lick that spot now to taste a different part of him, and it was like tasting an equally delicious, slightly different dessert. He opened his small mouth to take the skin in fully, sucking on it slightly, wanting to draw out the taste.

Then the marionette strings pulled. Sebastian's body shifted against his, and Ciel's hips arched up into the other, involuntarily, his greedy body wanting more of that pleasing friction that sent jolts of pleasure through him. He parted his lips against the others neck, a whimper melting into a slow moan as he fell back against the bed even more. His uncovered eye was half closed as it focused on the other, a deep ocean, confused, asking him for answers to unspoken, damning questions.

Demons were fallen angels. They were supposed to have a constant pain them, a yearning to always get back into heaven but to never be able to…but this, this was heaven…right here, now….to feel Ciel's lips touch him and that tongue caress against him…there was nothing that could be better. It made his heart pound hard with ecstasy to know that the one he so loved was giving him a level of affection within his own will…even if that will was being driven by the beast…

His whole body felt hot, like that tongue was dousing him with gas and then setting him aflame. Each lick he received made Sebastian wither against the boy. The heat took over every part of his body, and a sort of purr formed within his throat that was not human, but yet not hellish at the same time. "Ha…Master~…" He said with his eyes closed still while the sensitive spot was suckled on upon his neck.

Roses brushed over his cheeks, leaving some of their color behind as Sebastian was finding it more difficult to hold himself back by the second. His body completely burned within the flame as arousal overtook him. Those sound small hips bucked against him, driving him absolutely mad, and there was only one sort of medication for this insanity too…his illness only became more severe as that noise came from the other.

The two of them looked at one another, stare ever so intently into each other's oceans that were across the world from one another. They stood on each their shores, just daring each other to enter the water…

So many emotions were held within the demon's face as his red eyes looked into the blue one… "Master…" He finally said with a single breathy word. Ever so carefully, daring, the butler shifted the boy, directing him further onto the bed within it's center. He still remained over him, never wanting to leave that spot.

His hand, warm, uncertain but yet determined, stroked along the Ciel's bare chest. His fingers felt around his delicate curves until they pushed aside the fabric…the shirt and coat, so skillfully removing from his body.

The child's skin trembled beneath the adult's hands as they roamed down his chest, those puppeteer hands that drew his puppet closer; Ciel's body arched slightly into his touch, his breath catching in his throat . He began to tremble, almost violently then, only partly from the rush of his air on his exposed skin as his coat and shirt were removed.

But Why? What was really happening? Going to happen...

Ciel's cheeks burned as he flushed darkly, finally breaking eye contact, fixing his gaze on the drapes that fell from the canopy of his bed, a painting, a vase, anything but the black butler. It hurt his pride to be so exposed to Sebastian, and he struggled against his betraying body to keep his face, his mouth, and his wandering mind under control.

Of one thought he could hold on too: He was thankful that he was on his back, because on it, hidden against the inviting bed sheets was that which hurt his pride the most: the brand given to him in his past. His mark of a slave. Now, the savior that had freed him from that Hell was also branding him, enslaving him, marking him with his hands, his lips, his body. Was Ciel Phantomhive descending into a new Hell? He didn't believe in God. He had only believed in Sebastian...only trusted him...his shield...but then, the demon had also left him, abandoned him to his pathetic helpless childhood, just like all he had loved, only to come back. Sebastian was back.

With a gentle single blink, Sebastian's eyes traced the path of that his fingers had just walked and then upwards to his face. "So smooth…" he spoke in his sleek voice spoke to the other. "So perfect…"

It was just part of Sebastian's character. When he really loved something, he let it know. The cats knew this well, as they were the ones to receive his words such as these.

Ciel's eyes were parted away form him then…At first the demon frowned but then a smile quickly turned it upside down as he chuckled once and softly within his throat. Tenderly he slid his fingers up from the other's navel, over the soft hills of his chest, along the river of his neck, and then to the skyline of his jaw. He tilted his head to him, leaning ever so close down so that Ciel would be forced to see him…and only him…"Look at me…"

Ciel once again had his amour...he would have almost thought he had dreamed all of this if he wasn't beneath that very same demon's caresses at that moment...And now that he was back, he wasn't going to lose him again. He looked. He looked back at him.

The boy reached up to softly, weakly, gripping Sebastian's arms, curling his small fingers around the biceps, mirroring the thought of possession he had. "Sebastian...the contract..." Was all he could muster.

Those words…those words Leonard longed to hear…they were said. "Yes…my lord." He continued to smile without his grinning mask, but yet it was his real face.

He leaned down, closing his eyes as he started to gently kiss all around the child's face. Ciel felt a burning sensation within his eye, but at the same time Sebastian's lips met with the spot, his mouth placing careful and hazy touches so that the blaze within him would not be so severe.

Ciel's fingers dug into the demon's shirt and his exposed eye closed slowly, the only sign of the sudden pain the child was in. The searing pain in his eye, it was not a new feeling, it was not the first time that Ciel had felt it...yet it was new, because this time the demon's lips brushed against his eye, soothing him slightly. He didn't whimper or complain as the contract formed once more, because it was a welcome poison. It meant Sebastian was his again: His completely to control and to order. His shield had returned to him. The shadows he locked in his heart... those people who took him...they should fear him now.

'Yes…pull me to you. Make me a part of you again.' The words ran through Sebastian's head as he felt his shirt latched onto. The fire was there, engulfing them…but it was a welcomed flame. It was a flame that shielded them from the cold, and not one that burned them down.

Just as the spiritual signature made it's home within Ciel's eye, it also signed upon Sebastian's hand. The two of them felt that engraving at the same time…and the demon had never felt so complete. He had been missing that hexagram upon him for so long…and now it was back where it belonged. But…most all…things belonged like this…the two of them, Earl and servant, belonged together, against one another.

The pain subsided, and so did the pressure on the male's coat. Then from his lips fell his first command, "Remove my eye patch."

He wanted to know that it was there, that the other was bound to him. His dull, large blue eye opened, and a slow dim smile curved his lips. He could feel it, the connection to the other, and the power that seemed to flow through his veins...now he wanted to see it.

A hint of a smile appeared over his doll then. It was a face that made him feel like this heart within him that Ciel had made from scratch was the lit candle, and it melted into mush. "Yes, my lord." He repeated those words with much pride and joy.

Fingers cautiously clipped the thin piece of string to the eye patch. With a single pull he untied it and removed it from the boy's eye. "Show me…let me see your beautiful face…" He said to him, nothing but enchantment in his voice.

Ciel had missed them, so much, those words, that velvet, perfect voice washing over him, obeying him. He had missed those fingers removing his eye patch every night--swiftly, perfectly. His smile widened slightly as the other took off the binding with a single pull.

Sebastian never fumbled, like Tanaka.

He suddenly reached out and his hands found one of the demon's, moving it to his face, he turned it over so the back of it was facing him, and he ghosted his fingers over the glowing sign of the contract, tracing it with his index finger, marveling at it. "You're long overdue..." he mumbled, almost to himself.

He stared at Sebastian for a moment longer and then turned his face to the side, a small, almost inaudible noise forming at his throat as his cheeks reddened, "...bring me a mirror."

Yes, there it was…that lovely painting that was Ciel Phantomhive. The curtain from the frame was removed, and he could now see the whole picture. Sebastian loved seeing Ciel without that patch upon him, because he liked seeing his work…he liked seeing the mark of their connection…

Slowly he pulled himself back a bit to get a better view, but this movement was put to a hard stop as his hand was taken hold of. His breath was short and quiet. A tremor ran through his body at the simple way those dainty fingers treaded over the marking upon his hand. He'd let him touch him forever…

Another command then…The butler closed his eyes and bowed his head. He did not want to remove himself from this cherished spot, but he also wanted to badly to obey this boy's every whim. Just before he would take himself from off the bed, his fingers that were within the other's grasp took a final luxury stroke at the boy's cheek.

With light steps he took himself over to the dresser. Silently he opened a drawer and took out a hand held mirror. Like everything else, it was marked with the family seal. Within a second he stood back at the bed side, holding the mirror out to the boy. "My lord."

'Here, see what I see…look at yourself. Will you see just how exquisite you are?'

Ciel looked at himself in the mirror, at his right eye, at that circle that once was a pupil, an iris, and that now held the contract, with its prominent, purple star. He felt a wave of relief he couldn't explain, and the face in the mirror looked back at him with a pleased expression. Even the thick clouds behind his left eye seemed to disperse slightly. It didn't matter, the sacrifice of losing an eye, when he had gained Sebastian.

Attentively the butler watched his master. Sebastian looked at Ciel looking at himself. His eyes hung over his face and then his sight worked back down the rest of his body all the way to those stocking covered toes. He looked so wonderful there like that on the bed, but this was a painting not yet finished. He had to apply a few more brush strokes…or maybe…take some away…

Lifting his hand, Ciel moved the mirror aside gently, and in turn moved his gaze to the demon. "Sebastian, the terms are the same, correct? You must obey me...never leave my side, until my objectives are met?" His eye flashed intensely, eye narrowing slightly, "You will never disobey me, you will never abandon me again!"

The demon was pulled out of his head quickly when his master's voice spoke to him. He directed his eyes back into the other's with a narrow smile. "Yes, that is right." He gave a nod as he listened intently. Those red eyes became wide as he was told never to abandon him again. The idea of it made his throat fell tight. "Yes…my lord." He placed his bare hand over his chest and bowed in submissiveness. "I will always be by your side…I will never leave you again…no matter what…and…" He stood back up straight, bringing himself close to the bedside so that his legs touched against it. "I will…" He reached his hand forward, the blood within his eyes more watery than the normal thickness… "I will always…love you." His voice fallen to a whisper, but to a strong whisper. His hands had rested on each side of Ciel's face, direction his head upward to him as Sebastian would close his eyes and lock his lips with his once more.

It no longer felt good to deny that…

_A/N: To be continued~~~*EDIT* Alright, from this point on, the Beta reader is going to be Blueblood7__ ^__^  
_


	13. Dreaming

_A/N: Hello readers, I am SO sorry for the long wait. I had become very busy with cosplay for AnimeBoston, and then now I'm ill with the plague…haha…well, here's a new chapter for you. **It contains material that is not suited for young children**…if you know what I mean *wink*_

_Also, I am no longer editing the document myself, rather I attained Bluebird7 as my beta. Be sure to read her stories too!_

"I will always be by your side…I will never leave you again…no matter what…"

The demon's words washed over him, dispersed slightly the shadows that tormented him. He was safe...armed again against the bleak, dark world. He saw the other bow, and felt like a bird would feel if it's broken wing had been healed. He felt like he could fly. This was the Sebastian he knew, he trusted. Ciel knew that the demon couldn't lie to him, if they had a contract.

Then, his face was captured by the others hands and turned upwards. Once again the butler's scent invaded his senses, causing him to tremble. Only this time, it wasn't from repulsion. He didn't feel the need to slap the other's hand away. Somberly he stared into Sebastian's face, and saw in it the love that he spoke then, _"I will always love you."_

The words were oxygen, the demon's lips, the match, lighting his candle as they touched his own. Ciel's eyes closed and he felt himself weaken, his heart beat increasing. Could the other hear it? It scared him, confused him .The thudding in his veins that occurred every time their mouths met...the burning of his lips...of his blood.... whenever they were close...Sebastian... he couldn't fight him anymore. For a split second, Ciel was unable to move, then his arms rose, wrapped around Sebastian's neck, lips parted against the others as he breathed in more of his intoxicating, scent.

Closer…closer ... Sebastian needed to be closer. He could never be close enough until he was feeling Ciel's heart beat…Sebastian advanced himself, leaning over the bed and against his master. He could clearly feel the way the other shook. Now, with their contract, with both their signatures upon one another, he could sense and experience him so much more.

No words were spoken in response, but rather the thumping sound of the boy's heart was more than any sentence that he could have said. Ciel was always so cold…he was always so frozen and still…and to know that it was he, Sebastian Michaelis , that had awoken the child's body, his heart, meant more to him than any sort of blood or soul to feed Leonard.

The butler could sense everything. He knew every thought, every emotion, and every concern that was within Ciel's head then. He could detect that he was both satisfied and yet worried. Worried about what though? Could it have perhaps been embarrassment?

And then…had he finally received a kiss back in return? The younger splintered his lips against his. Those slender arms rose up and embraced him. It made his own heart stop for a second. He had never felt anything like this before. It was warm, and he felt as light as one of his raven black feathers…only, the raven was no more. It had turned into a dove.

He had two choices now, to pull back…to say goodnight…or to pull forward…and…But something had already decided that for him. Sebastian's strong but gentle arms wrapped around Ciel's body as he slid out of his own shoes so effortlessly. He drew himself back upon the bed, his lips never leaving the other's the whole while…With eyes closed, his tongue tenderly stroked along his master's bottom lip, his hands feeling up and down his sides.

Once again, Ciel fell back against the bed, with Sebastian over him, a completely inappropriate, forbidden position for a master and servant to be in. The Marchioness Middelford would be appalled, to see the way the Earl Phantomhive's fingers found their way to the other's soft hair. Threading through it, knotting in the tresses, clutching the demon to his master.

She would be astonished, at how Ciel felt a strange hunger at the pit of his stomach for the butler, and how he daringly pressed their lips firmly together. Opening his mouth further, he felt the other's hot breath mingle with his own. He was a child who had found a new, dangerous game, and he was greedy for it.

His body tensed and trembled beneath the others touches, arching, and he felt himself once more melting into that marionette, willing to be bent and pulled at the others will. The butler's name, the name of the one he so loved, melted out of his lips in a soft, almost tender whisper, "Sebastian..."

Then it hit him, like lightning, what he was doing ,becoming. The thought cracked through the recesses of his stone heart and the marionette string broke.

His eye wrenched open and he pulled himself from the others grasp, almost violently. Turning his face away , he pressed his rose colored cheek against the sheet. He struggled to catch his breath, and struggled further to say the words that fell from his lips in a cold whisper. "I'm... tired... I want to go to sleep..."

Desperately Sebastian wanted to, needed to, have Ciel touch him. His entire being, his body, his soul—everything, craved to have this boy's fingers on him. It was nothing more than a tease when those lean fingers waved through his hair. Even though his eyes were closed, there was more than just blackness given to him. So many colors danced about, around them.

The breath that was once so frigid was now warm from that fire, and the two of them, demon and human, exchanged their life force with one another. As Ciel's lips parted against his own, Sebastian breathed vigorously against his. His tongue lapped along the boy's lips for a second time before he took a daring chance and just barely exerted it within the younger's mouth. The tip of his tongue scarcely hugged against the child's. This was new and uncharted land that he was not sure if he could enter upon…

His name was said, in a way that it had never been spoken before. Just a little he slid his eyes open, the sight was blurred yet bright at the same time even though the light was dim in the room. "Mas…ter…" He responded in a breathy voice. His own hands continued to feel around the boy, wanting to explore every last curve of him…only, one hand had stopped at the child's shorts…His finger slipped over the button, but that was…just him walking onto No Man's Land…and stepping onto a mine field.

The explosion…the flowers around were destroyed. Sebastian sat up a but, his brow lifted and a small frown upon his lips as he looked at his king. He was quiet for a while. Maybe he would have believed him a few minutes ago…but now that they had this contract again, they had their link. Sebastian knew it wasn't tiredness, but fear.

"Master…" He said again, moving himself back over him carefully. It didn't take long for him to smile again, but it was not impure. "Fine…allow me to finish getting you ready for bed…" He let his hand drift back down the boy's front where he clipped the short's zipper between his index and third. It lowered, and his hands ran against him as he started to pull the shorts down around those long but immature legs. "…and you shall go to sleep like you want…where you will dream…and you…will…" He paused, idly running his hands back up. "…you will control your dream…" He tilted his head to the side, starting to run his moist lips back down the boy's neck, his hand stopping at Ciel's navel so that his digits could taunt just over his undergarment. "Allow yourself to use me…" He spoke with his boiling breath against him. "Please, enjoy me…control me, let me be your slave…tell me what to do…tell me what you want…and I will fulfill your every desire, my lord…" He arched himself further south, his lips kissing all the way down his chest until his tongue gave a single lick over the boy's nipple.

It had probably been countless time, when the boy was abused, and raped, but Sebastian wanted to make this different. Those dirty men were always the ones in control, and now he was allowing Ciel , for the first time to be the one in charge.

Ciel slowly turned his cheek and looked up at Sebastian. Saying nothing, he was surprised at how shallow and quick, his breath was as the other moved over him again. "Haa..haa..." He let his arousal darkened eyes roam over Sebastian's face as his own chest rose and fell...partly from fear, nerves...partly from something else. That creature from Hell...why did his voice, his touch, draw him in like a magnet?

That exotic purring voice once more drifted over him, "Fine, allow me to finish getting you ready for bed…"

'No! I don't want anymore touches! I'm…scared?' Ciel thought as he wanted to resist the other.

Then why did the earl's entire body tremble? His legs flinched slightly as he felt skilled fingers pulling his shorts down. The rush of air hit the burning, exposed skin of his thighs. Why did his stocking covered feet slowly shift and move against the bothersome fabric of his shorts, kicking them off? Why was his heart hammering against his chest as fingertips glided over it? He was filled with sensations he had never experienced before. The cord had snapped, but the puppet still moved, as the other wanted now, out of his own free will.

Those men, they had never spoke the way Sebastian spoke, or felt like Sebastian felt, they had never even looked at him. They had been brutal and taunting, smashing his innocence like a vase. Under Sebastian's touches, Ciel felt safe and protected. He was being molded again, made again into that delicate vase .

And like ceramic quivers underneath the skilled touches of an artist, when Sebastian's lips touched his neck, Ciel quivered, feeling a wave of weakness wash over him. Tilting his neck to the side and closing his eyes, he barely heard his savior's words. His mind revolved around those fingers on the thin fabric of his undergarment, making his breath catch in his throat.

"…_and you shall go to sleep like you want…where you will dream… you will control your dream…Please, enjoy me…control me, let me be your slave…tell me what to do…tell me what you want…and I will fulfill your every desire, my lord…"_

Was he then, to become the puppeteer in this game? Sebastian, the puppet? Yes! This is what Ciel wanted, to control Sebastian, to bend him at his will like a chess player bends his pawns. If the game became too dangerous, he could order him to stop any minute. He could cut the strings. He had that power now. Ciel's fear was slowly vanishing.

When Ciel felt that tongue against his nipple, all thoughts flew form his mind. His eye opened, blurred, startled by the electricity, the pleasure that coursed through him, making him shiver. His fingers curled around the sheets, the other's name fell from his open mouth, breathy and hot, so different than his usual icy tone, "Se...bastian..."

He knew what his first command was, had to be, "don't...stop..."

Those expensive shorts dropped onto the floor. Had Ciel even aided in the process of removing them? That alone caused Sebastian to feel slightly aroused once again. He had undressed the boy so many times, but the Earl just stood there, as the cold statue every time. Yes, he was getting him ready for bed…but the both of them know it would be a different bed from normal.

Sebastian took a moment to admire the boy only in his underwear. Indeed he looked so innocent, but this flower had been through a lot of harsh weather. Here Sebastian was, taking the flower form the earth and putting it in a pot, tending to it and making a vow to only give it rays of comforting light from now on. Ciel would no longer be away from sunshine.

So clearly he could feel the boy shaking under his touch, the sound of Ciel's breath matching with his body's thrill. It gave Sebastian a sort of natural high, and filled him more than any virgin's blood. To know that he was causing his master to fall to this dangerous drug that could be so addicting.

Having his name said like that, followed by those words, Sebastian couldn't help but smile. Perhaps his wide smirk could be felt against Ciel's flesh as his lips stayed attached to that sensitive nub upon his chest. "Mn~ Master…" He closed his eyes, breathing his ruler's name in a hot moist breath against his skin. He allowed his tongue to click against the nipple, in the shapes it made to form the words.

Ciel tasted so good. He knew that, but this was a new part of the candy bar. He wanted try all of it, every last ingredient, from the chocolate to the berries.

His hands continued to roam the land, the child feeling so soft and perfect under his touch. They explored all over him, not leaving one area untouched. He glided his fingers all the way from the other's shoulder, down his stomach, around his thigh, lifting his leg up a bit so that he could touch the bottom of his feet. Then they traveled back up the inside of the boy's leg where one hand finally stopped to just barely introduce itself to the child's crotch. Sebastian's fingers stroked and groped him just lightly while he finally released the nipple from within his mouth.

"Master…" He repeated, sounding completely intoxicated as he placed kisses across his chest until he met with the opposite nub and processed to lick and nip at that one. This was what he had always wanted, what always dreamed about every day and every night he slept.

The attention to his nipple, the way the other breathed his title, made Ciel's head roll to the side weakly, a wave of pleasure cresting over him . Each stroke of that soft muscle against his flesh, made the nub harden. His lips parted and a breathless, almost whining moan escaped them. His body arched involuntarily into the demons mouth, fingers digging into the bed sheets.

This, was new, uncharted territory for him. Never had he been touched, tasted this way...slowly... It felt so good, like he was drowning in the other's smell, touches, and words. He wanted to drown, to sink deeper into a world where only those hands that caressed his body existed.

Those migrating caresses were bringing him further and further away from his normal composure , into insanity. His blood boiled underneath his skin. His leg was lifted, thighs touched. Once more he was the puppet, arching, quivering, moving beneath those skilled fingers. When they glided over his crotch, a strangled gasp flew from him and he bucked his hips up, into that slow friction that sent jolts of pleasure through him. His young member throbbing and pulsing, startling him slightly with the scope of his arousal.

His eye opened, fixing hazily on the canopy of his bed. His fingers came up to claw at the demons shirt, cheeks glowing pink. His voice cam as a whisper with his next command, "take ...off your shirt Sebastian...". He suddenly wanted to see him, to see what was behind his garments...

It felt as if someone was turning the heat up in this room. It was like the fire just kept getting larger. Sebastian simply adored the way Ciel reacted to him, the way his squeezed those sheets, the way his body begged shamelessly for more of him. It made him feel like he was on fire, as if he were the flame himself. Being told not to stop, Sebastian was doing just as he was commanded.

Ciel just tasted too wonderful. The demon held the whole swollen nub within his mouth, his tongue dancing over it while his fingers continued to work over that soft and silky underwear. He could feel the child start to become hard just a bit, and Sebastian knew he had him now. How rewarding this was…

Up and down his hand moved along the soft curves of the boy. He wanted to not only feel him, but to drive him crazy with pleasure. The demon knew how much pain Ciel had been put through, and the emotions he held for the Earl made the butler aspire to introduce Ciel to the opposite of that.

The slight smile upon his lips curved to the corner of his face as his shirt was clutched. It made him prickle from head to toe to hear the order given to him. With a 'popping' noise, he released his love's nipple from his mouth and sat up, also withdrawing his hands.

Carefully, he positioned himself lightly against the other in a seated position upon his knees so that his own imprisoned erection rubbed against the thin fabric of his master's briefs. The tame smile stayed the same as his hands leisurely but alluringly coasted down his shirt, his fingers slipping each button free so soundly.

Once his chest became expose, he did what he was ordered to. It slid from his torso so smoothly. Eyes narrowed in somewhat of a playful manner then as he clipped the top with his fingers, holding it out to the side of the bed. With a quiet drop, it fell to the floor below.

His fingers clutched at the other's shirt, head bowing slightly, so that his cheek grazed the other's silky hair as the demon's fingers rubbed at his trapped member. The touching of his crotch, the moist mouth on his nipple, were slowly driving him into a frenzy. He quivered, thrusting his hips into that burning hand, sensing himself harden beneath the feel and weight of those fingers, flushing violently. Quick, ragged breaths escaped his parted lips, as well as the other's name, in a barely coherent whisper, "Se..ba..stian..."

Then, the demon removed himself. Why? He wanted that mouth on him forever. Ciel almost protested, but then he remembered his request, and he slowly fixed his gaze on the demon, heart pounding in anticipation. The boy could feel the way the demon's crotch rubbed slightly against his own, sending fire through his veins. He bit his lip. He was drowning too fast! He needed to be the puppeteer now! He wanted the other to be stripped down, like him. He was thankful Sebastian's hands were now dedicated to removing his shirt, for if they had stayed on him much longer he felt like he would have burst into flames.

Watching the demon, he pressed his hands, with spread fingers, into the sheets and lifted his upper body up slightly. He let his eye, almost blackened with pleasure, roam down that perfect chest. They were both males, but how different physically they were. Ciel always knew that his power didn't come from his physique, that he was a child. His strength lay in other areas. He knew it was because he was younger, but he marveled at the broadness of the others chest, his strong neck, and the line of his collarbone. Ciel's hands clenched into fists against the sheets.

The third and fourth commands, came from the earl's lips then, more authoritative then the last had been, "Blow out the candles, and then take off your pants, Sebastian."

"Sebastian". His name was said again in that passionate manner. Just hearing Ciel utter his name like that was enough to spread the heat to him. They were sharing the same disease. While most people would try hard to get rid of their symptoms, Sebastian only wanted it more. He would try to make the virus stronger. He would make Ciel moan his name over and over again like that…

His moon red eyes stayed trained on his master. He watched him, craving to see the reaction of what his given titillation would do to him as he rubbed himself against him. The boy bit his lip, and Sebastian let go of a single breath mixed with a hidden laugh. It was an answer that told him that the boy was trying to keep himself from indulging in the pleasure.

They were playing the same set of cards though as the demon noticed himself being looked at in the same manner in which he had been targeting Ciel. His eyes felt the Earl's eyes on him when he sat up.

He had to admit, with this shift position he felt even tenser than before. An eyebrow rose at what was said next. "Hmm…" He hummed to himself, slight disappointed. He wanted to see Ciel but, being a demon, he had superb sight in the darkness. However, he also wanted Ciel to see him. Oh well, there were other ways in which he could make Ciel experience him rather than just eyesight. "Yes, as you wish…my lord." He smiled widely with a narrow gaze.

The butler moved himself then, bringing himself once again off the bed. His silky fingers picked up the candlestick. His breath, as gentle and light as a spring breeze, out did the flames as he had done so often before. The moonlight became prominent in the chamber then.

With his grinning face, Sebastian turned back around to face his lord. He stood back so that the boy could have a perfect view of him. A finger teasingly stroked around the buckle of his belt for a little just before he unbuckled it. Pulling the piece of leather away, he made sure to slowly drop it to the floor to meet with his shirt. Now for the pants.

He directed the zipper down so leisurely, that one could hear the sound of the teeth parting. With a flick ,the trousers button was sprung. His pants dropped gently to his ankles. Stepping out of them, Sebastian also stepped out of his socks, toenails just as midnight black as his fingernails.

There the demon now stood in short, tight, coal briefs. It fit his body so supremely, showing off the perfect shape of his large manhood underneath. For a minute, Sebastian just stood there with his raven smile in order to encourage Ciel to look at him within the darkness.

Then, soundlessly he walked back to the bed, in reach of the other. Gently, he took hold of his master's wrist, barely wrapping his fingers around just incase the other did not desire this. He pulled that hand forward until he forced it into contact against his chest.

"Do you want to touch me?" His voice was captivating as he started to direct Ciel's hand around his chest and muscular stomach. "Do you want to feel me…?" Further….further….further down he brought the child's hand until it met with his confined but yet prominent erection. "…The way I did to you…." His tone getting even more alluring with each word that he said, with each stroke he would made the child's hand perform against him.

Sebastian was perfection incarnate. Ciel had always known it was so. It used to annoy him. So tiresome it was, the dark beauty of the other . Looking at him then, with the moonlight kissing his exposed skin, dancing over that devilish, feline smile, the demon appeared less a creature from hell, and more like something out of the Greek Mythology books in his library...A god...All Ciel could do was stare, as the other...fought to keep his face stoic. It didn't annoy him then, instead it made his breath catch in his throat.

The other took his hand , and he almost snapped a "Don't touch me, " as usual .Only Ciel couldn't bring himself to form words, to play the lord. His mouth felt dry, and he allowed himself to be controlled by that god, pulled into his orbit as the demon's skin met with his fingers. They trembled as digits brushed against smooth, unblemished skin as Sebastian's velvet voice drifted through the chamber, asking if he wanted to touch.

Deep down inside, Ciel knew that that is what he had wanted for a while now, to see what lay beneath those layers of butler attire. Countless occasions when he had watched Sebastian get him ready for the bath, rolling up his sleeves to show strong, graceful arms, and he had yearned to touch them. He wanted to see, to feel, those legs that could jump with such agility that could fight against countless oppressors.

Deep down, Ciel had craved to press his fingertips against Sebastian, against the muscles of the other's chest. To feel the friction, the heat, as flesh rubbed against flesh. The way his heart reacted to it, skipping and then accelerating, it was as if it was threatening to break through his chest.

Then, his hand was directed to the others erection, rubbed against it. The boy's ocean blue orbs widened, his breath hitched with a sharp gasp. Sebastian faded, for a split second, and he saw, he felt those greedy hands outstretched, and forceful. He withdrew his hand, bringing his free one to grip at his fingers. Ciel bowed his head, inky bangs hiding the way his round face paled. His shoulders quivered. The child stared at his hand, breathing heavily, just as rain began to beat down against the rooftop of Phantomhive Manor.

How is it that sunlight can both brighten, and burn? The inner turmoil Ciel Phantomhive went through then was kept to himself. He bowed his head more, revealing nothing to the other, and remained that way for a few minutes. The thoughts in his head were his alone.

Suddenly, he then looked up with a determined, fearless look too old for his age on his face. Almost abruptly he moved forward, his lips pressing against the demons throat, lips parting to inhale his scent, to taste his dessert flavored skin. Open mouthed they slid to Sebastian's collarbone, where he began to plant soft kisses against it. The tip of his tongue grazed the skin where the bone protruded slightly. Simultaneously, he slid his small hands slowly down the others chest, feeling the slight bumps as they moved against chiseled muscle.

His hand still traveled further down, daring, like the child himself. Ciel's hands stopped as they met with the fabric of the demon's undergarments. Was there hesitation? It was only slight. He inhaled sharply, a shuddering breath, and trembled as he pressed his slender fingers slightly against the confined member. Moving them slowly up and down, he mimicked in a fumbling, less experienced fashion, the demon's previous actions.

"Tell me..." the Earl spoke then, against the demons hot flesh, another order, his childish, elegant British voice husky, "how it feels..."

Having those tiny hands on his mature body was like bliss. It made Sebastian want to fuse with him even more. Even though he was the demon and Ciel was the human, Sebastian would allow Ciel to do whatever he wished to him at this point. He was a complete victim of love. It had taken him over. There was no more fighting the virus. Sometimes it really did feel so much better to give in.

Even though Sebastian was the carriage driver, he was still the servant. He continued to carry his master along the path, bringing him to the location where he desperately ached for him to be . The master did not want to go there though. His body jolted slightly as those fingers met with the area between his legs. This only lasted a second though as that small hand slid from within his loose grasp.

In slow motion, his arm dropped down to his side as he watched the younger closely. He could see the way that his master was having his own internal struggle even though there was nothing given away in the other's eyes. It was that nothingness that said everything. Sebastian had decided that this was something he could not force onto Ciel, but that he would have to tame his inner demons himself. He could always help him, of course. "Master~" He said with a compassionate smile, purring the name, the title, in such a way that would say more than just 'master.' Sebastian had just said 'I love you' all over again with the inflection of his voice. He was telling him that he was not like those men, those rapist, those beasts, but that he was his lover, and his alone. Of course in reality Sebastian was a lot like 'those men'…that is…to the rest of the world. Not Ciel though, not to his northern star.

Along with his unsaid speech came the rain. It was different than the water that ran down on them before. This was a sheltering, comforting rain. They were within comforting walls now, and not the mist of the storm outside.

What was it that Ciel heard then? Was it his words or the rainfall that brought the boy to look up at him again? Sebastian barely had time to process the new look within those ocean eyes before a wide look came to his own orbs. Lips pressed so adoringly against his throat. He swallowed harshly; the other was probably able to feel it, from the movement of his Adam's apple.

His jaw dropped just a bit, and his fingers parted at his sides. They itched to touch in return. Ciel's little mouth felt so hot and nice against him. Each spot that he kissed danced under those lips. When that cushy tongue lapped against his collar, Sebastian's breath caught in his throat only to come out hard in the end. Ciel…Ciel was touching him upon his own will. Those hands wandered downwards, his body feeling as if those hands made him ignite. How far would the child go towards being an adult? Sebastian almost begged for him to touch him more within that small moment of reluctance, but it happened.

Having those fingers work along his covered cock made his back arch, his chest almost touching against the other's. "Uhn…" he closed his as he moaned, only ever having dreamed that Ciel did this to him. His eyelids felt heavy, and it took effort for him to open them. He looked at the child. It becoming a challenge to breath straight. "It feels….it feels good…warm…" He paused to smile, eyes narrowing as he gave in some more and wrapped his arms around the slender boy, a hand swimming through his hair. "It feels like heaven~"

How many times had Sebastian bowed before him in the past? Countless...Ciel was not stupid. He knew it was the contract that forced the demon to submit to his wishes, but still it thrilled him, the power, the absolute power of having a force like Sebastian obeying his every whim.

And now, his Knight was bowing, but in a different manner. Arching, bending to his will, spider web waiting for his command instead of choking him. For a different reason, one he would not think about then, it was so hard to think at all. The moan that flowed from those perfect lips sent a thrill down his spine. Ciel felt much like he had that one night he had been given wine at Madam Red's dinner party, intoxicated, and the sensations invading him only made him more drunk. He wanted to hear more of the Sebastian's pleasure, to continuously break that cool facade. Small digits pressed further against the other's clothed erection, stroked faster against the length, fingers saying "...bow further to me."

The strong arms around him, the hands in his hair, Ciel closed his eyes and turned to press his round cheek against the stone wall of the demons chest. He felt safe, and yet in danger all at once. A small smirk ghosting over his lips as he heard the others words, his voice a low, soft ripple against the darkness, "Sebastian..."

He looked up at his demon, letting the hand that caressed his erection drift off to caress his thighs, traveling down his legs and brushing fingertips against the other's knees. His inexperience made him unsure of what to do next, he was out of commands now, his heart thudded in his chest, and it felt strange, so long he had been without a heartbeat, "Demons know nothing about heaven..."

Skin pressed against skin as Sebastian held onto the boy so dearly, as if he were his own child. He always wanted this, to feel Ciel's bare skin touch against his own. He felt warm, but who's body heat was it? Was it the butler's passionate desire that was simply covering over the frozen statue that was Ciel Phantomhive, or was it the Earl's heat as well?

His body ached and quivered for more of the boy's touch. It was almost an amusing sight to see the demon in such a feeble state form his normal immovable aura, but he was weak to Ciel's touch…and to Ciel alone…

A bit more pressure was applied to his member, and this made ecstasy invade Sebastian's world. Those little hands felt more of him, and it made him feel rabid. Ciel was torturing him. He needed to indulge in him now, to smother him.

Those words that were said…He pulled back just enough so that he could look at the other, his hand sliding from Ciel's hair to his face in order to tip his chin up. "Yes…that may be so…" the raven smirked with narrow bittersweet eyes, "but…I am not a demon right now…I am not your demon…I am your lover…a lover knows of heaven and all things good."

How right Sebastian was, Ciel thought. At that moment, gazing into those crimson orbs, Ciel knew that everything from Sebastian, which came from him, was going to be good. They were lovers. Ciel felt it, the love; it was almost a tangible force between their bodies. It called them closer, propelled his beating heart, and his quick breaths. The word made a rose tint form on his cheeks and he averted his gaze to the side.

Sebastian slid down to sit on his knees, his hands continued to caress the boy as he continued his decent down his master's body. While his hands ventured southward on Ciel's sides, his lips matched their path as he guided his tongue from his chest to groin. It was like he had heard what his fingers said to him, ordering him to bow down lower.

Now upon his knees, he placed his hands gently on the boy's hips while his mouth lingered softly upon the thin fabric of the underwear. With a single pull and shift, the servant positioned Ciel so that his slender legs could hang over his broad shoulders.

In an inert manner, he gave the boy a couple light licks to his arousal, his tongue wetting the fabric of the briefs. Slowly, his eyes shifted upwards to look at his king while he issued a few more laps. "Please master," he said between licks, his cheeks painted just slightly in pink, "…will you allow me to taste you completely?"

As the demon's hand traveled down his small frame, he quivered underneath the others touch. Ciel's thoughts were drowning in the rain, feeling those fingers slowly slide down his burning skin. When the demon's tongue joined their course, Ciel felt his body rise, his eyelids fluttered closed as a wave of pleasure crested over him, making him turn his head weakly. A small pleased sound lazily falling from his parted lips.

His hand had no trouble finding the demon's hair as Sebastian's mouth lingered near his undergarments. Involuntarily the Earl's legs spread, his greedy body speaking the language he couldn't, communicating with the demon his inner desires. Sebastian hoisted his slender legs onto his shoulders and a flicker of curiosity passed through the boy, mingling with a sense of anticipation. Ciel's heart pounded in his chest and he looked at the other, a shiver coursing through him as he spoke his name in a questioning breath "Sebastian..."

But his words were cut off. Eyes widened and a gasp fell from his lips as the other's tongue found his clothed arousal. An electric jolt of pleasure traveled down his spine as more licks followed, making his eyes close tightly together. Fingers fisting in the demon's hair, the boy's hips arched wantonly into his butler's mouth. Sebastian asked him a question then, about tasting him fully, and he blushed furiously. His head turned in an attempt to hide it, for he was sure Sebastian could see it even in the darkness. What would be his answer?

He wanted more good things....more of the pleasures of lovers. The boy nodded his assent, fingers trembling slightly in the other's hair.

The fabric of the boy's undergarments was rough yet smooth against Sebastian's tongue . Rough…and smooth….It was a physical manifestation of how this journey had been. Even though at times, Sebastian felt it was rough more than anything. But, it was also carving the jagged rock that was his heart into something smooth and inviting worthy of this boy, his King .

And now…for the final part…the final layer that needed to be lifted up to get out of the dark tunnel and into the daylight .

This was all so superlative. Ciel's body swam with his so perfectly. Every move that the butler made, big or small, was matched with his master's performance. It was simply splendid the way this child's legs parted for him and his hips pushed forward to meet his mouth. It made Sebastian's mouth water. This…this was what he wanted…to awaken this desire for him and him alone within Ciel's body and spirit.

"Mnh~" A breathy light moan dropped from his lips as Sebastian's hair was grasped. He hummed his pleasure against Ciel's special spot, the grasp only encouraging him to lick again…and he did. The demon pushed his tongue out further, steadily and vigorously taking a long final lap against the fabric of the underwear.

Scarlet eyes stared up the whole while, and his mouth grinned. He could see that bright blush upon Ciel's face, and he never looked more tempting than he did at this moment.

"Master~" He half spoke and moaned in a hot breath between the boy's legs. That nod…that single nod…it was the key he needed to unlock the treasure chest.

Tilting his head to the side, Sebastian ever so carefully clipped the fabric of the underpants between his teeth. He had done it so precisely as to only bite the underwear alone and nothing else.

His hands parted from the other for a moment, so that he could temporarily lift Ciel's legs to remove the piece of attire. With his mouth, Sebastian slid the underwear off around one of the child's leg. It dropped to the floor, meeting with his own shirt and pants. Sebastian had to smile at the sight of it, but it was all too soon that his eyes were back on his precious lord. Still on his knees, he looked at Ciel from head to toe, and finally just stared up at him. "You are so magnificent…and I shall make you feel that way, my love." Gently his hands rested upon the boy's hips, his eyes never leaving his master's face.

He took a silent breath to steady himself. He had only ever dreamed about this moment when he would be able to taste Ciel Phantomhive. Slowly, carefully, he inched himself forward. Every inch of the boy's erection met with the demon's soft moist tongue as he slid it sensuously from base to head.

The dead heart beating in Ciel Phantomhive's chest never felt so exhilarated, so alive.

It was definitely, a night for firsts.

Sebastian's mouth had never been there, in that spot between his legs. They trembled as the other's breath played between them, burning him. His blood and his body were on fire for the other. Ciel had never experienced these sensations be fore. He couldn't explain his body's aching the need for the demon, to be possessed by him. He was the fly, begging to be ravished by the spider. Hips quivered as he felt those sharp teeth slip off his undergarments, chest rising and falling in shuddering breaths as he felt the chill air of the bedroom against his now exposed skin. He had never felt so vulnerable, there, in the dark, so completely naked.

The devil's hands, when did it become a necessity to have them on him? Ciel wanted to order him, to never stop touching him, but he couldn't speak. His throat felt dry as his legs were lifted, as the demon stared up at him. Ciel turned his face to the side, blue orbs darkening, as he looked at the demon from the corner of his eye. The Earl cursed himself when he felt his cheeks grow even hotter, reflecting the heat inside him, pulsing in his groin. He didn't dare look at his erection, at the proof that he was… His eyes turned to glance at the wall, where he saw the shadows of the rain slipping down the window.

Those passion filled words, the way Sebastian called him, "My love". To hear that endearment from Sebastian's lips, it made an emotion wash over him that he couldn't explain, another first.

Then, that torturous tongue lapped at his member, and pleasure jolted through him. Ciel's eyelids closed and his fingers tightened further in the black tresses they had captured. His back arched, as the demon's name falling from his lips, before melting into a high-pitched, breathy moan. What were they doing? What was this? This aching for more, this longing to feel more of that tongue on him? When did it become the only thing in existence to Ciel? "Se…bastian…!"

The sweetest candy, the most expensive aged wine, and the water in the fountain of youth, the taste of Ciel's essence was all these, and yet none of these. This was the luxurious taste of Ciel Phantomhive, who had a better flavor and gave a better high than even the purest mountain spring on Earth.

'This…is what Ciel tastes like…' Sebastian said to himself in his head as he zealously took in the boy's essence. It was like everything he had ever imagined, and so much more. Just as he had wanted to feel every spot of Ciel, he wanted to taste every spot as well.

In a perfect response from the boy, his hair was pulled. This caused the demon to smile more as he kept his eyes plastered on his young lover. How lovely Ciel's cheeks looked painted in that scandalous shade of red. "You are delicious, master…" He said out loud just before he gave the boy another long lap to his erection just as before.

His hands started to roam around the child's legs then, feeling his hips and thighs in a slow and gently manner. He tilted his head, not caring that it would cause for his hair to be pulled more, for it was a good sensation. Gingerly, he slid his tongue back down along Ciel's shaft where he started lick circles around his prepubescent sac.

The intoxication Sebastian felt was just too much. It was like he was doing a drug that made his head spin and feel light. Naturally, his eyes began to close. Withdrawing his tongue, he replaced his licks with light kisses from the core of the boy and upwards until he his mouth reached the head of his cock. With much effort Sebastian opened his eyes, looking at his love in an almost drunken manner. One kiss to the tip of the boy's sex and then a flick of the tongue was followed by his lips wrapping around that succulent treat.

_Sebastian…_

His erection was licked, kissed. Ciel threw his head back, eyes closing, and it was impossible to keep his face stoic. It scrunched in pleasure. His mouth opened, short, quick breaths spilling out. That tongue, it was torturing him. But, it was a torture so different then, that which lay in the repressed shadows of his past. Here was a languorous, wet, heavenly torture, making his head swim in pleasure and his back arch. Once again he was the marionette, who could do nothing but moan out in barely a whisper as his sac met with the demon's warm tongue.

The velvet voice, the silken words, the soft, ardent touches to his thighs, reduced the boy to a quivering mass in demonic hands. Ciel opened his blurred eyes to stare at the canopied ceiling of his bed. Looking to heaven he wondered at his weakness as he experienced the heavenly, as he drowned in the mounting ecstasy.

_Sebastian… I'm so hot…_

Ciel's still developing, hard member quivered and pulsed as Sebastian wrapped his lips around it. The inexperienced child thrust his hips, greedily placing them where they wanted to be: encased by that hot, perfect mouth. He felt his body tense, a white heat in his stomach.

_It feels so good..._

His head fell back, face tightened. He bit his lip, trying to keep silent, but still a cry forced its way out of Ciel's mouth as he suddenly came, shuddering uncontrollably. It felt like his head was spinning as his hips arched further, seed spilled out into the demons mouth.

To have Ciel in his mouth like this, it was his Arcadia. Who needed Lau to get drugs, when he had the best one ever brought into this world right here? Bit by bit he downed more of the boy's inches, the soft but stern surface of his tongue grinding against the bottom of the shaft as he lowered himself. And then…what was this?

Sebastian's eyes opened wide in a bit of surprised awe as he felt his lover thrust himself forward into his mouth. With narrow seductive eyes, Sebastian looked back up at Ciel, seeing him on a completely different plain than reality. The boy was on a cloud, and it was he, Sebastian, that was pouring down a rain within the room. It was a toxic rain, polluted with pleasure and ecstasy.

He smiled around the boy's appendage, the demon no longer having an empty feeling inside as he now felt complete. Easily he was able to have Ciel's entire member within his hot mouth. His tongue curving around the rod as he decorated it with his hot breath and wet saliva.

Just as he was about to bring himself up, to suck on this divine lollipop, there was a noise that was better than God speaking himself. Without warning the sweetest nectar was given to him. His figure withered with selfish lust as all his senses perked up from feeling Ciel's hot seed pour into his mouth. "Mmnh~!" He moaned himself, eyes closed in completely enjoying the wonderful taste. "Mmnhasterh…" His voice vibrated into him as he swallowed the dose, but deviously he kept some on his tongue. The flavor was simply superb.

Sebastian's own body squirmed a bit, the weight upon his knees feeling heavy as he ached deeply between the boy's legs. His own cock pulsed and begged to be inside his love doll. Idly he drew himself back, removing his lips from off of his master's cock. A trail of both semen and saliva connected them still as he looked up to the boy, a joy within the devil's eyes.

Quietly he stood up, embracing the other as he wrapped his arms around Ciel's upper body, his suffering erection touching against him as well. With the smirk still upon him, and lips damp with substance, Sebastian brought his lips to kiss against the child's with an open mouth. His tongue invaded him, sliding against his master's to exchange the left over of the fluid he did not swallow. Sebastian wanted Ciel to taste himself, to taste just how incredible he was.

After his release, Ciel felt a strong wave of weakness, liquid warmth all over his body. He moved to fall backwards against the scandalized bed sheets, but a pair of strong arms circled around him, welding Ciel to the demon. They were pressed deliciously close skin against skin, mouth against mouth. He breathed heavily against Sebastian's moist lips, feeling an electric shiver traverse his petite frame despite his weakness. His hands felt their way from his Knight's arms to just below his shoulders, fingertips digging into the skin as his mouth was captured.

Ciel's blue orbs suddenly opened, widened in the darkness of the room as the other's tongue slid into the hot cavern of his mouth. The playful tongue pushed against his own, marking it with more than just the exotic taste of Sebastian. Along with that enticing flavor he could also taste a sticky, salty substance as well. Realization struck like lighting. Small fingers moved to the demon's lower arms, attempting to push them away and release himself from their grasp. Ciel pulled his mouth away and turned his face to the side, breath escaping rapidly, and lips slightly swollen from the kiss. His hand came up to them, tracing his parted mouth, where the substance lingered. The young Earl flushed, half in embarrassment and half in wonder.

'Was that really me? Had I actually done that?'


End file.
